UC-NRLF 


<\J    ' 

CD 

*f 


EOSTOF: 


&DUCATIOH  IIBB; 


OUTLINES 


ENGLISH     HISTORY 


(ioitquesi  to  %  ^nmit  Con*. 


WITH 


OBSERVATIONS  ON  THE  PROGRESS  OF  ART,   SCIENCE,  AND 

CIVILIZATION,  AND  QUESTIONS  ADAPTED  TO 

EACH  PARAGRAPH. 


FOR   THE    USE    OF  SCHOOLS. 

BY 

AMELIA    B.  EDWARDS. 

AMERICAN  EDITION,  CORRECTED  AND  BROUGHT  DOWN  TO  1868 


BREWER    AND     T  I  L  E  S  T  O  N. 
1875. 


Entered,  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1867,  by 

HICKUNQ,  SWAN,  AND  BREWER, 
In  the  Clerk's  Office  of  the  District  Court  of  the  District  of  Massachusetts. 


ELECTROTYPED  AT  THE 
BOSTON     8TEREOTTPE     FOUNDRY. 


GTFT 


EDUC. 
LIBRARY 


PREFACE 

TO  THE  AMERICAN  EDITION. 


In  republishing  the  very  excellent  summary  of 
English  history  recently  published  in  Great  Britain 
by  Miss  Edwards,  very  many  important  changes  and 
improvements  have  been  made,  in  order  to  render  it 
adapted  for  study  to  the  youth  of  our  own  country. 
All  those  points  and  events  in  which  the  histories  of 
the  two  countries  are  closely  connected  have  been 
materially  enlarged,  and  in  many  cases  first  introduced 
in  the  American  edition.  Without  these  the  work 
would  be  radically  deficient  as  a  text  book  for  Amer- 
ican schools.  Without  claiming  for  it  any  higher 
merits  than  those  of  a  concise  and  faithful  hand- 
book of  English  history,  the  American  publishers 
present  this  volume  to  the  consideration  of  all  in- 
terested in  the  education  of  youth,  believing  that  it 
will  be  found  to  supply  a  great  want,  and  one  that  has 

been  long  and  sensibly  felt. 

m 

138 


CONTENTS. 


CHAP.  pAfll 

L  —  ENGLAND  BEFORE  THE  CONQUEST.    ....  9 
"        ENGLAND  UNDER  THE  ROMANS,  FROM  B.  c.  55 

TO  A.  D.  449 10 

"       ENGLAND  UNDER  THE  SAXONS,  A.  D.  449  TO 

A.  D.  827 12 

«       ENGLAND  UNDER  THE  ANGLO-SAXONS,  A.  D.  827 

TO  1013 15 

"       ENGLAND  UNDER  THE  DANES,  A.D.1013  TO  1041.  21 
"       ENGLAND  UNDER  THE  SAXONS,  A.  D.  1041  TO 

1066. 22 

n.  —  THE  NORMAN  MONARCHS 25 

HI.  —  THE  HOUSE  OF  PLANTAGENET 31 

IV.  —  THE  HOUSES  OF  LANCASTER  AND  YORK.      .    .  39 

V.  —  THE  HOUSE  OF  TUDOR 46 

VI.  —  THE  HOUSE  OF  STUART. 59 

VH.  —  THE  HOUSE  OF  STUART,  (continued.)      ...  68 

Vm.  —  UNITED  HOUSES  OF  STUART  AND  NASSAU.  .    .  74 

IX.  —  THE  HOUSE  OF  BRUNSWICK 77 

X.  —  THE  HOUSE  OF  BRUNSWICK,  (continued.)    .    .  93 

(8) 


OUTLINES 


ENGLISH   HISTORY 


CHAPTER  I. 
ENGLAND  BEFORE  THE  CONQUEST. 

I.  IN  the  ancient  times,  nearly  two  thousand  years  ago, 
before  our  Saviour  was  born  on  earth,  and  when  Rome  was  a 
republic,  England  was  a  desolate  waste  of  land,  covered  with 
swamps  and  forests.     It  was  inhabited  by  a  savage  people, 
who  dressed  in  the  rough  skins  of  beasts,  and  stained  their 
bodies  with  colored  earths  and  the  juices  of  plants.    They  lived 
in  huts  rudely  constructed  of  wicker  and  mud,  which  were 
erected  in  little  clusters  here  and  there  over  the  country. 
These  clusters  were  called  towns,  and  they  were  generally 
situated  upon  small  clearings  in  tracts  of  woody  land,  and  were 
surrounded  by  a  trench,  and  a  low  wall  made  of  mud  and 
the  trunks  of  trees,  which  served  for  defence  in  time  of  war. 

II.  These  barbarians  went  by  the  name  of  Britons.     They 
were  divided  into  as  many  as  thirty  or  forty  tribes,  each  com- 
manded by  its  own  king  ;  and  these  tribes  were  constantly  at 
war  with  each  other.     They  made  swords  of  copper  mixed 
with  tin,  and  light  shields,  short,  pointed  daggers,  and  spears, 


10  OUTLINES    OF 

with  which  weapons  they  always  fought.  They  were  very 
fond  of  horses,  of  which  they  made  great  use  in  battle,  with 
their  war  chariots  and  cars,  for  which  they  have  ever  been 
celebrated  in  history. 

III.  The  Britons  had  a  strange  and  terrible  religion,  called 
the  Religion  of  the  Druids.     Most  of  its  ceremonies  were 
kept  secret  by  the  priests,  who  were  called  Druids ;  but  it  is 
certain  that  they  sacrificed  human  beings,  even  burning  them 
alive,  in  immense  wicker  cages.     They  met  together  in  dark 
woods,  which  they  called  sacred  groves,  and  there  instructed 
in  their  mysterious  arts  young  men  who  came  to  them  as  pu- 
pils.   They  built  great  temples  and  altars  of  huge  stones, 
open  to  the  sky,  some  of  which  are  yet  remaining. 

UNDER  THE  ROMANS  FROM  B.  C.  55  TO  A.  D.  449. 

IV.  Such  was  the  condition  of  the  ancient  Britons  fifty- 
five  years  before  the  birth  of  our  Saviour,  when  the  Romans, 
under  then*  great  general,  Julius  Ca?sar,  were  masters  of  all 
the  rest  of  the  known  world.     Caesar  had  then  just  conquered 
Gaul,  and  tempted  by  the  rich  pearls  and  tin  mines,  for  which 
the  island  was  famous,  he  came  over  with  his  ships  and  sol- 
diers, and  made  the  first  conquest  of  Britain.     He  soon,  how- 
ever, accepted  proposals  of  peace,  and  went  away ;  but  the 
next  spring  he  returned  with  a  large  army  from  Italy,  and 
laid  waste  the  country  in  every  direction.     He  again  made 
peace,   and  went  away,  with  all  his  remaining  ships  and 
men. 

V.  There  was  then  peace  in  Britain  for  nearly  a  hundred 
years,  when  the  Emperor  Claudius  came  and  conquered  it 
over  again,  (A.  D.  43.)     It  was  during  the  reign  of  this  em- 
peror that  Caractacus,  a  patriot  Briton,  made  the  first  at- 
tempt to  free  his  country  from  the  Roman  yoke.     After  a 
conflict  of  nine  years,  he  was  taken  prisoner  and  carried  to 
Rome ;  but  his  noble  manner,  and  dignified  endurance  of 
distress,  so  touched  the   Romun  people,  who  thronged  tb^ 


ENGLISH   HISTORY.  11 

streets  to  see   him,  that  he  was  released  and  restored  to 
ireedom. 

VI.  Still  the  Britons  would  not  yield.     They  rose  on  every 
possible  occasion,  and  died  by  thousands  sword  in  hand.     In 
the  reign  of  Nero,  (A.  D.  61,)  Suetonius  Paulinus  landed  on 
the  Island  of  Anglesea,  (then  called  Mona,)  and  destroyed 
the  sacred  groves  and  altars  of  the  Druids,  and  burned  them 
in  their  own  wicker  cages.      This,  together  with  the  cruel 
treatment  offered  to  Boadicea,  queen  of  the  Iceni,  once  more 
roused  the  Britons  to  rebellion.     They  laid  the  Roman  pos- 
sessions waste ;  they  drove  the  Romans  out  of  London,  then 
a  little  town  but  a  trading  place,  and  hanged,  burned,  cruci- 
fied, and  slew  by  the  sword  seventy  thousand  of  them  in  a 
few  days  ;  but  in  the  course  of  the  same  year  the  Britons  were 
again  defeated  with  immense  loss. 

VII.  Still  the  spirit  of  the  Britons  was  not  broken.     As 
soon  as  Suetonius  left  the  country,  they  fell  upon  his  troops, 
and  retook  the  Island  of  Anglesea.     Some  years  afterwards, 
(A.  D.  78,)  Julius  Agricola  took  possession  of  the  country, 
established  the  Roman  power  in  Britain,  founded  the  arts  of 
peace,  and  made  the  people  happy  and  civilized.     He  also  de- 
livered them  from  the  fierce  incursions  of  the  Picts  and  Scots, 
and  helped  them  to  erect  a  great  wall  of  separation,  or 
line  of  forts,  from  the  Clyde  to  the  Forth.1    This  ram- 
part, however,  proved  ineffectual  against  the  savage  inroads 
of  the  northern  tribes,  and  a   second  was  constructed  by 
Hadrian,  between  the  Solway  and  the  Tyne.     The  Emperor 
Severus,  however,  in  leading  an  army  against  the  northern 
barbarians,  (A.  D.  207,)  found  these  earthen  walls,  affected 
by  the  rains   and   frosts  of  nearly  a   century,  in  a   state 

1  The  line  of  forts  which  Agricola  raised,  from  the  Clyde  to  the 
Forth,  was  strengthened,  sixty  years  after,  by  a  turf  rampart, 
known  as  the  wall  of  Antoninus,  which  extended  thirty-six  miles. 
The  wall  of  Hadrian  was  a  mighty  rampart,  extending  from  the 
Bolway  *•  ±h-  Tync.  Severus  perfected  the  wall  of  Hadrian. 

JVJJIGHT. 


12  OUTLINES    OF 

of  decay,  and  resolved  to  erect  one  of  stone/  which  is  known 
in  history  as  the  Wall  of  Severus. 

VIII.  The    Romans   remained    masters     of    Britain  for 
nearly  four  centuries;  but  hi  the  reign  of  Honorius,  when 
the  Roman  power   all  over  the   world  was   fast  declining, 
and  when  Rome  wanted  all  her  soldiers  at  home,  they  were 
compelled  to   withdraw   their  forces  to  defend   themselves 
against  the  Goths,  A.  D.  410.     In  the  course  of  this  time, 
however,  the  Romans  had  done  much  to  improve  the  condi- 
tion of  the  Britons.     They  had  made  great  military  roads, 
built  forts,  taught  them  how  to  dress  and  arm  themselves 
much  better  than  they  had  ever  known  how  to  do  before, 
and  had  refined  the  whole  British  way  of  living.     But  above 
all,  they  had  introduced  the  Christian  religion,2  and  taught  the 
people  the  great  lesson,  that,  to  be  good  in  the  sight  of  God, 
they  must  love  their  neighbors  as  themselves,  and  do  unto 
others  as  they  would  be  done  by. 

UNDER  THE  SAXONS,  A.  D.  449  TO  A.  D.  827. 

IX.  No  sooner  had  the  Romans  left  Britain  than  the 

1  The  Wall  of  Severus  was  about  eight  feet  thick  and  twelve  feet  high  to 
the  base  of  the  battlements.    To  the  wall  were  added,  at  unequal  distances, 
a  number  of  stations  or  towns,  eighty-one  castles,  and  three  hundred  and 
thirty  turrets.    At  the  outside  of  the  wall,  to  the  north,  was  dug  a  ditch 
about  thirty-six  feet  wide  and  twelve  to  fifteen  feet  deep.    Severus's  works 
run  nearly  parallel  with  the  other  two,  the  greatest  distance  between  them 
being  less  than  a  mile,  and  the  least  about  twenty  yards.     As  long  as  the 
Roman  power  lasted,  this  barrier  was  constantly  garrisoned  by  armed  men. 
The  stations  were  so  near  to  each  other  that,  if  a  fire  was  lighted  on  any 
one  of  the  bulwarks,  it  was  seen  at  the  next,  and  so  repeated  from  bul- 
wark to  bulwark,  all  along  the  line,  in  a  very  short  time. 

2  The  commencement  of  the  religious  history  of  Britain  is  involved  in 
much  obscurity.    That  the  Christian  religion  was  introduced  early  will  be 
ieen  by  Tertullian.  who,  in  his  work  against  the  Jews,  written  A.  D.  209, 
says  that  "  even  those  places  in  Britain  hitherto  inaccessible  to  the  Roman 
arms  have  been  subdued  by  the  gospel  of  Christ."    Some  writers  maintain 
that  St.  Paul  visited  Britain,  and  they  ground  their  assumption  upon  the 
feet  that  several  of  the  most  active  years  of  his  life  are  not  accounted  for 
in  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles ;  and  they  think,  therefore,  that  some  part  of 
this  interval  must  have  been  employed  among  the  Britons. 


ENGLISH    HISTORY.  13 

marauding  Scots  poured  in  upon  the  defenceless  Britons, 
who,  not  knowing  what  better  to  do,  in  their  distress  applied 
for  assistance  to  the  Saxons,  a  people  of  North  Germany. 
The  Saxons  accordingly  came  across  the  Channel,  between  six 
and  seven  thousand  of  them,  under  the  command  of  two 
brothers,  named  Hengist  and  Horsa,  (A.  D.  449.)  They 
speedily  routed  the  Scots,  but  rewarded  themselves  for  their 
trouble  by  taking  possession  of  the  country.  They  were  fol- 
lowed by  other  German  tribes ;  the  Saxon  tongue  became 
the  national  language  ;  and  the  native  Britons  fled  to  Wales, 
Cornwall,  and  the  coast  of  France. 

X.  After  the  death  of  Hengist,  (A.  D.  488,)  the  Saxons 
poured  in  upon  Britain  faster  than  ever,  and  it  was  in  oppos- 
ing these  tribes  that  the  famous  Arthur,  king  of  Britain,  won 
his  great  renown.1     He  succeeded  in  securing  to  his  people 
forty  years  of  peace ;  but  valor  alone  was  of  no  avail.     The 
natives,  in  time,  were  all  overpowered  or  expelled,  and  the 
land  was  divided  into  seven  small  kingdoms,  each  governed 
by  a  Saxon  tyrant.     This  period  is  known  as  the  period  of 
the  Saxon  Heptarchy.     The  following  was  the  order  of  dis- 
tribution :  — 

XI.  The  kingdom  of  Cantia,  or  Kent,  comprised  the  fer- 
tile county  of  Kent,  and  was  founded  by  Hengist,  (A.  D.  457.) 

The  kingdom  of  South  Saxony  comprised  the  counties  of 
Sussex  and  Surrey,  and  was  founded  by  Ella,  (A.  D.  490.) 

The  kingdom  of  West  Saxony,  or  Wessex,  comprised  the 
counties  of  Hampshire,  Berkshire,  Wiltshire,  Dorsetshire, 
Somersetshire,  and  Devonshire,  and  was  founded  by  Cerdic, 
(A.  D.  519.) 

The  kingdom  of  East  Saxony  comprised  the  counties  of 
Essex,  Middlesex,  and  a  part  of  Hertfordshire,  and  was 
founded  by  Ercenwin,  (A.  D.  527.) 

The  kingdom  of  Northumbria   comprised  the  counties  of 

1  The  history  of  this  renowned  prince  is  regarded  by  many  as  a  fiction; 
but  Lord  Bacon  says  of  him  that  "  in  his  acts  there  is  enough  of  truth  to 
make  him  famous,  besides  that  which  is  fabulous."  He  is  said  to  have  de- 
feated the  Saxons  in  twelve  different  engagements. 


14  OUTLINES    OF 

Northumberland,  Cumberland.  Westmoreland,  Durham,  York- 
shire, Lancaster,  and  a  portion  of  Scotland.  It  was  founded 
by  Ida,  (A.  D.  547.) 

The  kingdom  of  East  Anglia  comprised  the  counties  of 
Norfolk,  Suffolk,  and  Cambridge,  and  was  founded  by  Uffa, 
(A.  D.  575.) 

The  kingdom  of  Mercia  comprised  all  the  midland  coun- 
ties, namely :  Cheshire,  Stafford,  Derby,  Warwick,  Worces- 
ter, Shropshire,  Hereford,  Gloucester,  Oxford,  Buckingham, 
Bedford,  Huntingdon,  Northampton,  Rutland,  Leicester,  Not- 
tingham, Lincoln,  and  a  part  of  Hertfordshire.  It  was 
founded  by  Cridda,  (A.  D.  585.) 

XH.  As  it  may  readily  be  supposed,  these  seven  kings  of 
Britain  did  not  at  all  times  reign  in  perfect  friendship  with 
each  other,  but,  on  the  contrary,  distracted  the  country  with 
perpetual  quarrellings  and  warfare.  Despite  even  these  draw- 
backs, the  nation,  however,  began  to  experience  the  blessings 
of  industry.  Property  received  the  protection  of  law,  and  no 
part  of  the  island  was  without  an  acknowledged  ruler.  Most  of 
the  people  were  still  idolaters  and  heathens,  worshipping  the 
false  gods  of  ancient  Rome.  In  the  year  597,  a  good  monk' 
named  Augustin,  came  over  from  Italy,  with  forty  of  his  breth- 
ren, and  converted  the  two  powerful  kings  of  Kent  and  North- 
umberland, in  due  time.  A  great  church  was  then  built  at 
Canterbury,  (A.  D.  604 ;)  Sebert,  king  of  Essex,  became  a 
proselyte ;  the  Temple  of  Apollo,  at  Westminster,  was  pulled 
down  and  a  church  dedicated  to  St.  Peter  was  erected  where 
the  Abbey  is  now  standing ;  the  Temple  of  Diana  was  de- 
stroyed, and  the  original  cathedral  c-f  St.  Paul  raised  on  its 
site.  The  King  of  Kent  promulgated  a  code  of  laws,  before 
616.  Soon  after  this  the  whole  of  Britain  embraced  Christi- 
anity, and  the  seven  kingdoms  were  united  into  one  by  the 
conquests  of  Egbert  of  Wessex,  receiving  the  collective  name 
of  England,  which  it  has  ever  since  retained.  Winchester 
was  at  this  time  considered  to  be  the  capital  of  the  country. 


ENGLISH    HISTORY.  15 

UNDER  THE  ANGLO-SAXONS.    A.  D.  827  TO  1013. 

EGBERT. 

BEGAN  TO  REIGN  A.  D.  827,  DIED  837. 
XHL  Scarcely  had  peace  and  unity  been  established  in 
the  kingdom,  when  a  horde  of  savage  warriors,  called  Danes,1 
who  dwelt  upon  the  shores  of  the  Baltic  Sea,  landed  on  the 
coasts,  but  were  routed  on  the  coast  of  Devon,  and  forced  to 
fly  back  to  then:  ships  for  safety,  only  to  return  again  about 
once  in  every  year.  After  a  prosperous  reign,  troubled  only 
by  these  invaders,  Egbert  died,  (A.  D.  836,)  and  was  buried 
at  Winchester. 

ETHELWOLF. 

BEGAN  TO  REIGN  A.  D.  836.    DIED  857. 

XIV.  Egbert  was  succeeded  by  ETHELWOLF,  his  eldest  son. 
The  Danes  now  made  themselves  the  terror  of  England,  and 
though  frequently  repulsed,  continued  to  plunder  the  coun- 
try, and  occasionally  to  carry  off  the  inhabitants  for  slaves.    In 
the  year  851  they  sailed  up  the  Thames  with  three  hundred 
and  fifty  ships,  and  burned  the  cities  of  London,  Rochester, 
and  Canterbury.     At  length  the  people  were  roused  to  action, 
and  the  Danes  were  defeated,  and  induced  for  a  while  to  sus- 
pend their  attacks.     The  king  then  undertook  a  pilgrimage 
to  Rome,  (A.  D.  855,)  where  he  was  honorably  received,  and 
tarried  nearly  a  year.    On  his  return  through  France,  forgetting 
that  he  was  an  old  man,  he  married  Judith,  the  Mr  and  youth- 
ful daughter  of  King  Charles  the  Bald,  and  caused  her  to  be 
crowned  as  queen.     He  first  granted  tithes  to  the  clergy,  and 
instituted  an  annual  tribute  to  the  pope,  called  Peter's  Pence. 
Ethelwolf  died  A.  D.  857,  and  was  buried  at  Steyning,  in 
Sussex. 

ETHELBALD. 

BEGAN  TO  REIGN  A.   D.    857.      DIED   860. 

XV.  Ethelwolf  left  four  sons,  Ethelbald,  Ethelbert,  Ethel- 

The  people  of  Denmark  and  Norway. 


16  OUTLINES    OP 

red,  and  Alfred.    He  was  succeeded  by  ETHELBALD,  whose 
reign  was  brief,  unimportant,  and  vicious. 

ETHELBERT. 

BEGAN  TO  REIGN  A.  D.    860.      DIED   866. 

XVI.  Ethelbald  was  succeeded  by  his  brother  ETHELBERT, 
who  reigned  only  six  years,  during  which  time  the  Danes  ex- 
acted tribute  from  the  English,  laid  waste  the  whole  county 
of  Kent,  and  pillaged  the  city  of  Winchester,  and  established 
themselves  permanently  on  the  Isle  of  Thanet.     Ethelbert 
died  A.  D.  866. 

ETHELRED. 

BEGAN  TO  REIGN  A.  D.  866.    DIED  871. 

XVII.  Ethelbert  was  followed  by  ETHELRED,  a  brave  sol- 
dier, whose  reign  was  one  long  scene  of  valiant  warfare  with 
the  Danes.     It  is  said  that  in  one  year  he  fought  no  less  than 
nine  pitched  battles  with  the  enemies  of  his  country.     In  all 
these  he  was  assisted  by  his  young  brother,  Prince  Alfred,  after- 
wards illustrious  as  King  Alfred  the  Great.     Prince  Alfred 
was  called  Secundarius  to  Ethelred.        In  this  reign  the  in- 
vaders  penetrated  into  Mercia,  and  took  up  their  winter 
quarters  at  Nottingham,  whither  the  king  instantly  marched 
to  dislodge  them.     A  great  battle  ensued,  in  which  Ethelred 
was  killed,  leaving  to  Alfred  the  inheritance  of  a  kingdom 
which  had  declined  into  an  almost  hopeless  condition  of  weak- 
ness and  distress. 

ALFRED  THE  GREAT. 
BEGAN  TO  REIGN  A.  D.  871.    DDZD  901. 

XVIII.  ALFRED  THE  GREAT  was  just  twenty-two  years  of 
age  when  he  ascended  the  throne  of  England,  and  for  the  first 
eight  years  of  his  reign  was  engaged  in  an  uninterrupted  and 
disastrous  warfare  with  the  Danes.     They,  in  fact,  at  one 
time  made  themselves  entire  masters  of  the  kingdom,  so  that 


ENGLISH   HISTORY.  17 

Alfred  was  obliged  to  assume  many  humble  disguises,  and 
hide  himself  in  the  woods,  and  in  the  cottages  of  his  peasant 
subjects.1  In  Somersetshire,  however,  he  found  friends  and 
assistance,  built  a  strong  fort,  assembled  an  army,  and  once 
more  took  the  field  against  the  Danes.  Assuming  the  dis- 
guise of  a  wandering  harper,  he  then  penetrated  to  the 
enemy's  camp,  judged  of  the  most  favorable  manner  of 
attack,  brought  his  soldiers  unexpectedly  upon  them,  and 
achieved  a  brilliant  victory.  Many  years  of  peace  ensued, 
during  which  this  brave  and  good  king  applied  himself  to  the 
improvement  of  his  country  and  the  happiness  of  his  people. 
XIX.  Alfred  now  framed  a  code  of  laws,  some  of  which 
exist  to  the  present  day ;  divided  England  into  counties  and 
hundreds;  established  the  first  regular  militia;  encouraged 
the  arts  and  sciences;  and  instructed  the  English  in  the 
art  of  navigation  and  ship  building.  He  was  the  first 
monarch  who  made  England  a  naval  power;  and  to  state 
that  he  was  the  most  accomplished  man  of  his  day,  that 
he  was  the  hero  of  fifty-six  battles,  that  he  established 
the  system  of  trial  by  jury,  and  founded  the  University  of 
Oxford,  is  but  to  relate  a  portion  of  his  glory.  After  twelve 
years  of  peace,  the  Danes  again  invaded  the  coasts.  They 
came  under  the  command  of  Hastings,  their  sea  king,  with  a 
fleet  of  three  hundred  and  thirty-one  ships,  and  landed  on 
the  coast  of  Kent,  making  Appledore  their  head  quarters. 
A  protracted  struggle  ensued,  at  the  conclusion  of  which  they 
were  again  defeated.  The  wife  and  family  of  Hastings  were 
taken  captives;  but  Alfred,  with  his  general  moderation, 
restored  them  to  the  Danish  chief,  on  condition  that  he  and 

1  In  one  of  these  disguises  King  Alfred  was  left  alone  one  day,  by  a 
peasant's  wife,  to  watch  some  cakes  which  she  put  to  bake  upon  the  hearth. 
But  being  at  work  upon  his  bow  and  arrows,  with  which  he  hoped  to  punish 
the  Danes  when  a  brighter  time  should  come,  and  thinking  of  his  poor, 
unhappy  subjects,  his  noble  mind  forgot  the  cakes,  and  they  were  burned. 
What  said  the  peasant's  wife  in  a  rage,  when  she  came  back,  and  little 
thinking  that  she  was  scolding  the  king?  "You  will  be  ready  enough  to 
eat  them  by  and  by,  and  yet  you  cannot  watch  them,  idle  dog ! " 

2 


18  OUTLINES    OP 

all  his  followers  should  leave  the  country.  To  these  terms 
they  readily  acceded;  but  some  few  lingered  till  the  year 
897.  Alfred  died  A.  D.  901,  at  Farringdon,  in  Berkshire. 
He  was  buried  at  Winchester,  and  has  left  behind  him  the  most 
honorable  reputation  for  learning,  courage,  wisdom,  and  gen- 
erosity, of  any  English  sovereign.1 

EDWARD  THE  ELDER. 
BEGAN  TO  REIGN  A.  D.  901.    DIED  925. 

XX.  EDWARD  THE  ELDER,  second  son  to  King  Alfred  the 
Great,  succeeded  to  the  crown.  His  reign  was  troubled  by 
the  pretensions  of  his  cousin  Ethelwald,  who  disputed  Ed- 
ward's claim,  and  fell  at  last  on  the  field  of  battle.  Towards 
the  end  of  this  king's  reign  he  invaded  Wales,  and  added  to 
the  endowments  of  the  Cambridge  University.  He  gradually 
extended  his  power  over  the  whole  of  England,  and  so  the 
seven  kingdoms  were  firmly  united  in  one.2  He  died  A.  D. 
925,  leaving  a  numerous  family. 


1  Under  Alfred,  all  the  "best  points  of  the  English-Saxon  character  were 
first  encouraged,  and  in  him  first  shown.    It  has  been  the  greatest  charac- 
ter among  the  nations  of  the  earth.    Wherever  the  descendants  of  the 
Saxon  race  have  gone,  have  sailed,  or  otherwise  made  their  way,  even  to 
the  remotest  regions  of  the  world,  they  have  been  patient,   persevering, 
never  to  be  broken  in  spirit,  never  to  be  turned  aside  from  enterprises  on 
which  they  have  resolved.    In   Europe,  Asia,  Africa,  America,  the  whole 
world  over ;  in  the  desert,  in  the  forest,  on  the  sea ;  scorched  by  a  burning- 
sun,  or  frozen  by   ice  that  never  melts, — the  Saxon  blood  remains  un 
changed.    Wheresoever  that  race  goes,  there  law,  and  industry,  and  safety 
for  life  and  property,  and  all  the  great  results  of  steady  perseverance,  aro 
certain  to  arise. 

2  When  England  thus  became  one  kingdom,  ruled  over  by  one  Saxon 
king,  the  Saxons  had  been  settled  in  the  country  more  than  four  hundred 
and  fifty  years.    Great  changes  had  taken  place  in  its  customs  during  that 
time.    The  Saxons  were  still  greedy  eaters  and  great  drinkers,  and  their 
feasts  were  often  of  a  noisy  and  drunken  kind ;  but  many  new  comforts,  and 
even  elegances,  had  become  known,  and  were  fast  increasing.     Hangings 
for  the  walls  of  rooms,  where,  in  these  modern  days,  paper  is  used,  are 
known  to  have  been  sometimes  made  of  silk,  ornamented  with  birds  and 


ENGLISH  HISTORY.  19 

ATHELSTAN. 
BEGAN  TO  REIGN  A.  D.  925.    DIED  941. 

XXI.  King  ATHELSTAN  had  not  been  many  years  estab- 
lished on  his  father's  throne  when  a  great  league  was  formed 
against  him  by  the  Danes,  Scots,  and  other  nations.     They 
were,  however,  completely  defeated,  and  five  of  the  kings,  his 
enemies,  were  slain,  (A.  D.  938.)     This  monarch  caused  the 
Bible  to  be  translated  into  the  Saxon  tongue,  and  presented 
a  copy  to  every  church  throughout  the  kingdom.     He  also 
gave  encouragement  to  commerce  by  decreeing  that  every 
merchant  who  had  taken  three  voyages  should  be  entitled  to 
the  rank  of  a  thane,  or  nobleman.     Athelstan  died  at  Glouces- 
ter, A.  D.  941,  and  was  buried  at  Malmesbury,  Wilts. 

EDMUND  I. 

BEGAN  TO  REIGN  A.  D.  941.      DIED  946. 

XXII.  Athelstan  was  followed  by  his  brother  EDMUND,  a 
youth  of  eighteen  years  of  age,  whose  first  act  was  to  subdue 
the  Danes  gathered  together  under  the  command  of  Anlass. 
He  was  stabbed  by  a  wicked  robber  named  Leolf,  (A,  D.  946,) 
and  was  succeeded  by  his  brother  Edred, 


flowers  in  needlework.  Tables  and  chairs  were  curiously  carved  in  differ- 
ent woods ;  were  sometimes  decorated  with  gold  or  silver ;  sometimes  even 
made  of  those  precious  metals.  Knives  and  spoons  were  used  at  table ; 
golden  ornaments  were  worn  —  with  silk  and  cloth,  and  golden  tissues  and 
embroideries ;  dishes  were  made  of  gold  and  silver,  brass  and  bone.  There 
were  varieties  of  drinking  horns,  bedsteads,  musical  instruments.  A  harp 
was  passed  round,  at  a  feast,  like  the  drinking  bowl,  from  guest  to  guest ; 
and  each  one  usually  sang  or  played  when  his  turn  came.  The  weapons  of 
the  Saxons  were  stoutly  made,  and  among  them  was  a  terrible  iron  hammer 
that  gave  deadly  blows,  and  was  long  remembered.  The  Saxons  themselves 
were  a  handsome  people.  The  men  were  proud  of  their  long,  fair  hair, 
parted  on  the  forehead,  their  ample  beards,  their  fresh  complexions,  and 
clear  eyes ;  and  the  beauty  of  the  Saxon  women  filled  all  England  with  a 
new  delight  and  grace. 


20  OUTLINES    OF 

EDRED. 

BEGAN  TO  REIGN  A.  D.  946.      DIED  955. 

XXIH.  This  king  rebuilt  Glastonbury  Abbey,  and  was  en- 
tirely ruled  by  the  abbot,  named  Dunstan.  Dunstan  was,  in 
fact,  the  virtual  king  of  England.  Edred  died  A.  D.  955, 
and  was  buried  at  Winchester. 

EDWY. 

BEGAN  TO  KEIGN  A.  D.  955.      DIED  959. 

XXIV.  The  profligate  and  careless  EDWY  received  the 
crown  of  his  uncle,  and  offended  the  prejudices  of  his  clergy 
by  marrying  the  Princess  Elgiva,  a  lady  of  great  beauty,  but 
of  near  relationship  to  himself.     Dunstan,  who  had  hitherto 
been  absolute  in  the   kingdom,   succeeded  in  uniting  the 
priesthood  against  this  marriage.     Edwy  was  compelled  to 
divorce  his  wife,  and  she  was  murdered  with  barbarous  cru- 
elty by  her  enemies.     Edwy  died  of  grief,  (A.  D.  959,)  being 
threatened  by  sedition  in  all  parts  of  his  dominions,  and  over- 
borne by  the  influence  and  hatred  of  Dunstan,  the  abbot. 

EDGAR. 
BEGAN  TO  REIGN  A.  D.  959.    DIED  975. 

XXV.  EDGAR,  surnamed  the  Peaceable,  next  ascended 
the  throne.     He  was  elected,  and  consequently  governed,  by 
the  monks ;  built  many  monasteries ;  and  increased  the  navy 
to  three  hundred  and  sixty  ships.     During  this  reign  the 
tribute  payable  by  the  Welsh  people  was  forgiven  them  on 
condition  of  their  producing  every  year  three  hundred  wolves' 
heads.     In  four  years  they  exterminated  every  wolf  from  the 
mountains  and  forest  lands  of  Wales.     This  king  was  so  arro- 
gant of  his  conquests,  that  he  caused  his  barge  to  be  rowed 
by  eight  princes  along  the  River  Dee.    He  died  after  a  reign 
of  sixteen  years,  (A.  D.  975.) 


ENGLISH   HISTORY.  21 

EDWARD  II. 

BEGAN  TO  REIGN  A.  D.    975.      DIED  978. 

XXVI.  This  unfortunate  young  monarch,  commonly  called 
the  Martyr,  whose  reign  had  promised  to  be  happy  and  ju- 
dicious, was  stabbed,  (A.  D.  978,)  by  order  of  his  step-mother, 
Elfrida,  while  drinking  a  cup  of  wine  at  the  gate  of  Corfe 
Castle,  in  Dorsetshire.  He  was  succeeded  by  his  half-brother, 
Ethelred,  the  son  of  Elfrida,  after  a  brief  kingship  of  little  more 
than  three  years. 

ETHELRED  II. 

BEGAN  TO  REIGN  A.  D.   978.      DIED   1016. 

XXVIL  In  this  reign  the  Danes  once  more  flocked  to  the 
coasts,  and  Ethelred  was  weak  enough  to  buy  them  off  with 
a  money  tribute,  called  Danegelt,  which  was  levied  by  a  tax 
of  one  shilling  on  every  hide  of  land  throughout  the  country, 
and  is  the  first  knd  tax  upon  record  in  our  history.  Soon 
this,  even,  ceased  to  satisfy  them,  and  the  king  formed  a  cow- 
ardly plan  to  massacre  all  the  Danes  in  the  kingdom,  instead 
of  meeting  them  in  fair  battle.  This  disgraceful  skughter 
took  place  on  the  13th  of  November,  A.  D.  1002,  and  was 
revenged  by  a  great  invasion  of  the  enemy.  They  sailed 
from  Denmark  under  the  command  of  Sweyn,  their  king, 
who,  after  a  protracted  struggle  of  eleven  years,  put  Ethelred 
to  flight,  and  ascended  the  English  throne,  (A.  D.  1013.) 

UNDER  'ju/1  DANES.    A.  D.  1013  TO  1041. 

SWEYN  . . .  BEGAN  TO  REIGN  1013  ...  DIED  1014. 
CANUTE  ...      "  "      1017  ...      "     1035. 

XXVin.  SWEYN  died  suddenly  in  little  more  than  a 
month  after  he  was  proclaimed  King  of  England.  The  Danes 
declared  Canute,  his  son,  king ;  but  Ethelred  returned  and 
attempted  to  reign.  A  war  immediately  ensued,  which  lasted 
two  years,  when  Ethelred  died.  The  English  people  then 
declared  Edmund,  surnamed  Ironside,  son  of  Ethelrcd  IL> 
2* 


22  OUTLINES    OF 

king ;  but  he  and  Canute  made  peace  by  dividing  the  kingdom 
between  them.  Before  Edmund  had  reigned  for  one  year  over 
his  portion,  he  was  murdered  at  Oxford,  and  Canute,  who  was 
at  that  time  (A.  D.  1017)  the  most  powerful  monarch  in  Eu- 
rope, became  sole  king.1  Having  not  only  conquered  Engknd, 
but  the  countries  of  Norway  and  Sweden,  he  called  himself 
King  of  England,  Denmark,  Norway,  and  Sweden.  He  ban- 
ished the  children  of  Ethelred,  but  married  Emma,  their 
mother,  and  died  (A.  D.  1035)  at  Shaftesbury. 

HAROLD. 

BEGAN  TO  REIGN  A.  D.    1035.     DIED   1039. 

XXIX.  HAROLD,  surnamed  Harefoot,  from  the  swiftness 
with  which  he  ran,  was  the  son  of  Canute  by  his  first  wife. 
He  reigned  only  four   years,  and  died  at  Oxford,  A.  D.  1039. 

HARDICANUTE. 

BEGAN  TO  REIGN  A.  D.    1039.     DIED   1042. 

XXX.  Harold  was   succeeded  by  his  weak  and  wicked 
half-brother,  HARDICANUTE.     He  died  from  intemperance, 
after  a  short  reign  of  two  years,  (A.  D.  1042,)  and  was  the 
last  representative  of  the  Danish  line. 

UNDER  THE  SAXONS.    A.  D.  1041  TO  1066. 
EDWARD  THE  CONFESSOR. 

BEGAN  TO  REIGN  A.  D.    1042.      DIED    1066. 

XXXI.  A  Saxon,  known  as  EDWARD  THE  CONFESSOR, 

1  The  old  writers  of  history  relate  how  that  Canute  was  one  day  disgusted 
with  his  courtiers  for  their  flattery,  and  how  he  caused  his  chair  to  be  set  on 
the  sea  shore,  and  feigned  to  command  the  tide,  as  it  came  up,  not  to  wet 
the  edge  of  his  robe,  for  the  land  was  his ;  how  the  tide  came  up,  of  course, 
without  regarding  him ;  and  how  he  then  turned  to  his  flatterers,  and  re- 
buked them,  saying,  what  was  the  mi?:ht  of  anv  earthly  king  to  the  might 
of  the  Creator,  who  could  say  unto  the  sea,  "  Thus  far  shalt  thou  go,  and 
no  farther"? 


ENGLISH    HISTORY.  23 

was  next  chosen.  This  monarch  was  famous  for  his  piety,  and 
married  Editha,  daughter  to  Earl  Godwin.  Having  been 
educated  abroad,  in  the  court  of  Normandy,  Edward  the 
Confessor  retained  but  little  affection  for  the  customs,  or  even 
for  the  natives,  of  his  own  country.  He  evinced  a  marked 
preference  throughout  his  reign  for  all  French  laws  and 
habits,  and  by  this  line  of  conduct  gave  considerable  cause 
for  jealousy  to  his  people.  He  repealed  the  tax  called  Dane- 
gelt,  and  was  the  first  king  who  touched  for  that  disease 
known  as  the  king's  evil  During  this  reign  William,  Duke 
of  Normandy,  came  over  to  visit  England,  and  Edward,  it  is 
said,  then  promised  to  him  the  reversion  of  the  English 
crown.  Edward  the  Confessor  rebuilt  Westminster  Abbey, 
and  at  his  death,  on  January  5,  1066,  was  canonized  as  a  saint 
by  the  Roman  Catholic  church. 

HAROLD  II. 

BEGAN  TO  REIGN  AND  DIED  A.  D.    1066. 

XXXIL  HAROLD,  son  of  Earl  Godwin,  was  then  elected 
king  by  the  council  of  the  states,  but  was  destined  to  find  a 
powerful  opponent  in  Duke  William  of  Normandy.  This 
warlike  and  ambitious  prince  of  France  ckimed  the  crown ; 
and  gathering  around  his  standard  all  the  recruits  he  could 
muster,  landed,  with  sixty  thousand  men,  upon  the  coast  of 
Sussex,  and  defeated  the  English  in  a  great  battle,  (October 
14,  1066,)  rendered  still  more  disastrous  by  the  death  of 
Harold,  and  famous  to  all  as  the  battle  of  Hastings. 

Thus  ended  the  Saxon  period,  which  had  subsisted  with  va- 
rious fortune  in  England  for  upwards  of  six  hundred  years. 

QUESTIONS  TO  CHAPTER  I. 

I.  What  was  the  ancient  con-      the  state  of  the  country  at  this 
clition  of  Britain  ?   By  whom  was      early  period  ? 

it  inhabited?  III.   What  was  the  religion  rf 

II.  By  what  name  were  the      the  Britons  ?     What  is  said  cf 
people  called  ?     For  what  were      the  Druids  ? 

they  distinguished  ?     What  was          IV.   Who  was  the  first  con- 


OUTLINES   OP 


queror  of  Britain?    When  did 
Julius  Caesar  land  ? 

V.  Who  was  the  second  con- 
queror, and  when  did  he  arrive  ? 
Who  was  Caractacus  ? 

VI.  What  injuries  roused  the 
Britons  to  a  second  rebellion  ? 
What  was    the    result  of   this 
rebellion  ? 

VII.  Who  established  the  Ro- 
man power  in  Britain  ?     What 
good    service   did  Agricola    do 
the    Britons,    and    what    great 
work  of  defence  did  he  build  for 
them  ?    Where,  and  when,  and 
by  whom  was  the  second  wall 
constructed  ?      When    and    by 
whom  was  the  third  wall  con- 
structed ? 

VIIL  For  how  long  did  the 
Romans  remain  masters  of  Eng- 
land ?  Why  did  they  withdraw 
their  forces  ?  How  had  they 
improved  the  condition  of  the 
country  ? 

IX.  What  caused  the  Britons 
to  apply  to  the  Saxons  for  aid  ? 
When  did  the  Saxons  come  over, 
and   who   were   their   leaders  ? 
How   did    the    Saxons   reward 
themselves  for  beating  the  Scots  ? 
What    became    of    the    native 
Britons  ? 

X.  Who  was  King  Arthur, 
and  for  what    is    he    famous  ? 
What    term   of   peace    did    he 
secure    for    his    people  ?      Into 
how  many  kingdoms  was  Eng- 
land   afterwards    divided  ?     By 
what  name  is  this  period  known 
in  history  ? 

XI.  Relate  the  order  of  dis- 
tribution    among     the      seven 
Saxon  kings. 

XII.  Did    the    kings    reign 
in  peace  together  ?     What  was 
the    state    of   the    country   at 
this  time  ?     Who  was  Augus- 
tin,   and   what    did    he    effect 
in  England  ?     What  churches 
were  built,   and  what  temples 
were  pulled  down  ?    What   is 
said   about    a   c;>de    of  laws? 


When  were  the  people  con- 
verted to  Christianity,  and  by 
whom  ?  Who  united  the  seven 
kingdoms  into  one  ?  By  what 
name  was  it  then  called  ? 

XIII.  What  was  the  conduct 
of    the    Danes    at    this    time  ? 
When  did  Egbert  die  ? 

XIV.  By  whom  was  Egbert 
succeeded  ?     Relate    the    chief 
acts  of  Ethelvvolf.     Relate  the 
events  of  851.    What  pilgrimage 
did  he  make  ?    When  did  Ethel- 
wolf  die  ? 

XV.  By  whom  was  Ethelwolf 
succeeded  ? 

XVI.  By  whom  was  Ethel- 
bald    succeeded  ?      Relate    the 
encroachments    of   the   Danes. 
When  did  Ethelbert  die,  and  by 
whom  was  he  succeeded  ? 

XVII.  What  was  the  charac- 
ter of  Ethelred  ?     How  many 
battles  did  he  fight  in  one  year  ? 
What  was  the  manner  of  Ethel- 
red's  death  ? 

XVIII.  At  what  age  did  Al- 
fred the  Great  begin  his  reign, 
and  in  what  year  ?    Relate  the 
events  of  the  first  eight  years  of 
his  reign. 

XIX.  How  did  Alfred   em- 
ploy the    years   of   peace   that 
followed  ?     Of  how  many  bat- 
tles was  he  the  hero  ?    What 
system   of   trial    did    he  intro- 
duce, and  what  great  abode  of 
learning    did   he  found  ?    Who 
was  Hastings,  and  in  what  way 
did    Alfred    treat    the    captive 
family  ?     When  did  he  die,  and 
what  reputation  has  he  left  ? 

XX.  Who  was  the  successor 
of  Alfred?     Relate  the  events 
of  Edward's  reign. 

XXI.  What  great  league  was 
formed   against  Athelstan,  and 
how   did  it  terminate  ?     What 
great  work  did  he  cause  to  be 
translated?     When  did  Athel- 
stan die  ? 

XXII.  By  whom  was  Athel- 
stan  succeeded,   and  what  was 


ENGLISH    HISTORY. 


25 


the  first  act  of  the  new  king  ? 
When  did  Edmund  die,  and  by 
whose  hand  ? 

XXIII.  By  whom  was  Ed- 
mund I.  succeeded  ?    What  ab- 
bey was  rebuilt  by  Edred,  and 
by  whom  was  the  king  ruled  ? 
When  did  he  die  ? 

XXIV.  What  was  the  char- 
acter of  Edwy,  and  in  what  way 
did  he  offend  the  clergy  ?    What 
became  of  Elgiva,  and  when  did 
the  king  die  ? 

XXV.  By  what  class  of  men 
was  Edgar  the   Peaceable  gov- 
erned ?      Relate    his    principal 
deeds.     When  did  he  die  ? 

XXVI.  By  whom  was  Edgar 
succeeded,    and    how   was    he 
murdered  ? 

XXVII.  What  king  next  as- 
cended the  throne  ?    What  was 
the   Danegelt?    When  did  the 
cowardly  massacre  of  the  Danes 
take  place  ?     How  was  it  re- 
venged ? 

XXVIII.  For  how  long  did 


Sweyn  reign  in  England,  and 
by  whom  was  he  succeeded  ? 
Who  was  Edmund  Ironside, 
and  what  was  his  fate  ?  Name 
the  titles  of  Canute.  Whom  did 
he  marry,  and  when  did  he  die  ? 

XXIX.  Who  was  Harold  I.  ? 
How  long   did    he    reign,   and 
when  did  he  die  ? 

XXX.  By  whom  was  Harold 
succeeded  ?    From  what  cause 
and  in  what  year   did  Hardi- 
canute  die  ? 

XXXI.  Of  what  nation  was 
Edward    the    Confessor  ?      To 
whom  did  he  promise  the  crown 
of  England  ?     When  did  he  die, 
and  what  honors  did  he  receive 
after  death  ? 

XXXII.  Whose  son  was  Har- 
old ?     Who    disputed  Harold's 
right  to  the  crown  ?     Of  whom 
did    William's    army    consist  ? 
When  was  the   battle  of  Has- 
tings fought  ?     For    how  long 
had  the  Saxons  ruled  in  Eng- 
land ? 


CHAPTER    II. 
THE  NORMAN  MONARCHS. 


Began  to  reign.     Died, 

WILLIAM  I.       A.  D.     1066 1087. 

WILLIAM  II.        "        1087 1100. 

HENRY  I.  «       1100 1135. 


Began  to  reign.     Died. 
STEPHEN.  )       -10K         ,,-. 

(House  of  Blois.)/      UW....UM. 


WILLIAM  I. 

BEGAN  TO  REIGN  A.  D.    1066.      DIED    1087. 

I.  WILLIAM  L,  known  as  the  Conqueror,  was  as  politic  as 
lie  was  ambitious.  Being  wisely  determined  not  to  irritate 
those  whom  he  had  conquered,  he  forbore  to  seize  upon  the 
crown  as  upon  mere  booty,  but  went  through  the  form  of 
asking  the  sanction  of  the  English  themselves — a  sanction 


26  OUTLINES    OF 

which  was  not  long  withheld  by  the  clergy  and  nobility,  and 
for  which  he  testified  his  gratitude  by  entering  into  a  solemn 
engagement  to  protect  the  rights  and  liberties  of  his  new 
subjects.  These  oaths  are  still  taken  by  every  English  mon- 
arch on  the  day  of-  coronation. 

IE.  At  first  he  governed  impartially  enough ;  but,  some- 
how, became  greatly  changed  after  the  lapse  of  a  few  years, 
and  did  such  deeds  as  left  him  the  reputation  of  a  ruthless 
tyrant.  He  seized  the  rich  estates  of  Saxon  landholders,1  and 
gave  them  away  to  his  Norman  followers ;  had  a  great  sur- 
vey made  of  all  the  land  in  England,  which  was  entered  as 
the  property  of  its  new  comers,  on  a  roll  called  Doomsday 
Book  ;  obliged  the  people  to  put  out  their  fires  at  a  certain 
hour  every  night,  on  the  ringing  of  a  bell  called  the  curfew  ; 
formed  the  New  Forest  for  his  boar  and  deer  hunting,  by 
depopulating  a  tract  of  country  about  thirty  miles  in  circuit, 
demolishing  thirty-six  parish  churches,  together  with  the 
Jiouses  of  its  inhabitants ;  instituted  the  forest  laws,  which 
deprived  the  people  of  then*  ancient  right  of  hunting  and 
killing  game  throughout  the  kingdom,  making  it  a  greater 
prime  to  take  the  life  of  an  animal  than  that  of  a  man ; 
made  the  feudal  system  2  far  more  oppressive  than  during  the 
reign  of  the  Saxon  kings  j  and  even  strove  to  make  the 

1  Many  of  the  Saxon  landholders  would  not  submit  to  the  rule  of  the 
|f  onnans,  and  took  shelter  in  the  forests  which  then  covered  a  great  part  of 
the  country,  and  subsisted  by  robbery ;  and  as  their  children  were  bred  up 
In  the  same  wretched  mode  of  life,  England  was  long  infested  by  such  free- 
booters.   The  famous  Robin  Hood  was  one  of  these  outlaws. 

2  The  feudal  system  was  first  brought  into  England  by  the  Saxons.    Thia 
system  was  a  custom  of  giving  land  for  services,  and  the  person  who  held 
the  land  was  the  vassal  of  him  who  granted  it,  and  was  bound  to  perform 
certain  services  for  him.    The  nobles  and  bishops  were  the  vassals  of  the 
king ;  the  common  people  were  th*  vassals  of  the  nobles  and  bishops.    The 
services  required  by  the  king  of  the  crown  vassals,  as  they  were  called,  was 
to  bring  him  soldiers  and  money,  whenever  he  was  going  to  war.    Thus  the 
armies  were  raised  in  the  feudal  times,  every  baron  bringing  his  train  of 
armed  vassals  into  the  field;  for  the  people  were  all  bound  to  arm  them- 
selves as  soldiers,  and  follow  their  lord  whenever  they  were  commanded  to 
do  so;  and  they  were  obliged  to  contribute  money  also,  to  make  up  the 
sum  wanted  by  their  lord  for  the  king. 


ENGLISH    HISTORY.  27 

French  language  the  language  of  the  country,  by  causing  it 
to  be  adopted  in  the  service  of  the  church  and  in  the  courts 
of  justice.  Hence  arose  the  mixed  vocabulary  of  the  Eng- 
lish language,  which  to  this  day  consists  as  much  of  Norman 
as  of  Saxon  words.  William  the  Conqueror  died  A.  D. 
1087,  bequeathing  England  in  his  will  to  William,  Normandy 
to  Robert,  and  five  thousand  pounds  to  Henry.1 

WILLIAM  II. 

BEGAN  TO  EEIGN  A.  D.    1087.      DIED   1100. 

TTT.  WILLIAM  RUFUS,  so  named  from  the  red  color  of  his 
hair,  succeeded  his  father.  He  inherited  the  ambition  and 
talents  of  his  father,  and  was  like  him  avaricious,  tyrannical, 
and  cruel.  His  reign  was  constantly  disturbed  by  insurrec- 
tions, and  by  quarrels  with  the  ecclesiastics,  particularly  with 
Anselm,  the  archbishop  of  Canterbury.  He  at  one  time  in- 
vaded Normandy,  the  dukedom  of  his  elder  brother  Robert, 
as  some  of  his  subjects  had  declared  in  favor  of  Robert  for 
king,  but  returned  without  a  battle,  a  treaty  of  peace  having 
been  concluded  between  them. 

IV.  During  his  v  reign  commenced  those  extraordinary 
wars,  carried  on  by  ah1  the  chivalry  of  Europe,  against  the 
Saracen  possessors  of  Jerusalem,  known  by  the  name  of  the 
CRUSADES.  2  The  first  crusade  went  out  in  the  year  1096, 

1  Notwithstanding  the  tyranny  of  the  Normans,  their  conquest  produced 
good  as  well  as  evil.    They  were  a  more  civilized  people  than  the  Saxons, 
and  better  acquainted  w.th  many  arts,  especially  those  of  agriculture  and 
architecture.    Even  chimneys  were  uot  introduced  into  England  until  after 
the  conquest. 

2  It  had  long  been  the  custom  of  Europe  for  people  to  make  journeys  to 
Jerusalem,  which  were  called  pilgrimages,  to  visit  the  tomb  of  our  Saviour. 
Jerusalem  belonging  to  the  Turks,  and  the  Turks  hating  Christianity,  these 
pilgrims  were  often  insulted  and  ill  used.     At  length  a  monk  called  Peter 
the  Hermit  began  to  preach  throughout  Europe  that  it  was  the  duty  of  all 
Christian  warriors  to  deliver  Jerusalem  from  the  hands  of  the  Turks.    An 
excitement,  such  as  the  world  had  never  known  before,  was  created.    Thou- 
sands and  thousands  of  men,  of  all  ranks  and  conditions,  departed  for  Jeru- 
salem, to  make  war  against  the  Turks.    The  war  is  called  im  history  th« 
first  crusade. 


28  OUTLINES   OP 

and  with  it,  amongst  other  sovereign  princes,  Robert,  Duke 
of  Normandy,  who  mortgaged  his  rich  provinces  to  William 
Rufus  for  five  years,  that  he  might  have  sufficient  money  for 
the  enterprise.  For  nearly  five  years  William  trampled 
Normandy  under  foot.  He  was  accidentally  shot  by  Sir 
Walter  Tyrrel,  A.  D.  1100,  while  hunting  deer  in  the  New 
Forest  This  monarch  erected  Westminster  Hall  for  his 
banqueting  chamber.  It  was  then  the  largest  room  in  Eu- 
rope, and  was  built  upon  the  site  of  the  present  structure. 
In  the  year  1100,  four  thousand  acres  of  land,  which  had 
been  the  property  of  Earl  Godwin,  father  to  Harold  II.,  and 
were  by  him  bequeathed  to  the  monks  of  Canterbury,  were 
suddenly  overflowed  by  the  sea.  The  site  where  they  once 
extended  lies  opposite  the  city  of  Deal,  and  is  known  to 
sailors  as  one  of  the  most  dangerous  upon  the  coast  line. 
They  are  called  the  Goodwin  Sands, 

HENRY  I. 

BEGAN  TO  REIGN  A.   D.    1100.      DIED   1135. 

Y.  HENHY,  youngest  brother  to  William  Rufus,  now  has- 
tened up  to  Winchester ;  secured  the  royal  treasure  j  mar- 
ried Matilda,  a  descendant  of  the  ancient  Saxon  line  j  removed 
the  unpopular  restrictions  of  the  curfew ;  and  had  succeeded 
in  obtaining  the  throne  and  the  favor  of  the  people,  before 
Duke  Robert  (the  rightful  heir)  could  come  over  to  dispute 
the  succession.  He  then  made  war  upon  Robert;  invaded 
Normandy ;  possessed  himself  of  that  entire  duchy ;  took 
the  duke  prisoner,  and  confined  him  in  Cardiff  Castle  for  the 
remainder  of  his  life,  a  period  of  eight  and  twenty  years. 

VI.  King  Henry  I.  had  one  son,  who,  with  a  hundred  and 
forty  young  men  of  the  noblest  families  in  England,  was 
drowned  off  the  coast  of  Harfleur,  (A.  D.  1120,)  on  his  re- 
turn from  Normandy,  where  he  had  been  receiving  the  hom- 
age of  the  French  barons.  The  death  of  this  prince  was  a 
great  blow  to  the  king,  who  is  said  never  to  have  smiled  after- 
wards. During  this  reign,  a  body  of  military  monks,  called 


ENGLISH   HISTORY.  29 

the  Knights  Templars,  established  themselves  in  England; 
the  first  English  park  was  laid  out  at  Woodstock  ;  rents  were 
made  payable  in  money,  having  previously  been  payable  in 
cattle,  corn,  £c. ;  the  coinage  was  corrected  ;  a  standard  fixed 
for  the  regulation  of  weights  and  measures  ;  and  the  length 
of  the  English  yard  taken  from  the  measurement  of  the 
king's  arm.  Woollen  stuffs  were  also  introduced  at  this  time 
from  the  Low  Countries,  and  a  colony  of  Flemings  settled 
at  Worsted,  near  Norwich,  for  manufacturing  purposes. 
Henry  I.  died  (A.  D.  1135)  in  the  sixty-seventh  year  of  his 
age,  leaving  one  daughter,  named  Matilda,  wife  to  the  em- 
peror of  Germany.  It  is  said  that  King  Henry  died  from 
eating  too  largely  of  a  dish  of  lampreys. 

STEPHEN,  (Earl  of  Blois.) 

BEGAN  TO  REIGN  A.   D.    1135.      DIED   1154. 

VII.  STEPHEN,  Earl  of  Blois,  and  nephew  to  King  Henry, 
hastened  over  from  Normandy,  and  was  received  as  king  by 
the  lower  orders  of  the  people,  although  Matilda,  by  right  of 
birth,  should  have  reigned  in  England.     He  had  more  diffi- 
culty with  the  clergy,  but  gained  even  their  votes  at  last ; 
seized  the  royal  treasure ;  and,  to  obtain  favor  with  the  pop- 
ulace, restored  the  laws  made  by  Edward  the  Confessor. 

VIII.  Matilda  did  not  long  delay  her  claim,  and,  shortly 
after  these  events,  landed  with  a  brave  little  retinue  of  one 
hundred  and  forty  knights,  took  Arundel  Castle,  gathered 
together  a  considerable  number  of  recruits,  gained  a  battle 
over  Stephen,  (A.  D.  1141,)  and  was  crowned  Queen  of  Eng- 
land at  Winchester  Cathedral.     She  was  not  liked,  however, 
by  either  the  people  or  the  nobility.     Stephen  was  again 
recognized  as  king,  and  Matilda  deposed.     She  contrived  to 
escape,  and  brought  up  her  son,  named  Henry,  as  a  future 
rival  to  the  usurper. 

IX.  When  Prince  Henry  had  reached  his  sixteenth  year, 
he  showed  such  courage  and  talent  that  he  received  the  hon- 
or of  knighthood,  (A.  D.  1149,)  and  undertook  an  invasion 

3 


30 


OUTLINES    OF 


of  England.  Stephen  was  by  this  time  worn  out  with  the 
struggles  of  many  years,  and,  to  prevent  further  bloodshed 
and  misery,  agreed  that  the  youth  should  be  associated  with 
him  in  the  government,  and  succeed  to  the  crown  upon  his 
decease.  A  great  fire  devastated  London  during  this  reign, 
(A.  D.  1136,)  and  all  the  city  from  Aldgate  to  St.  Paul's  was 
laid  in  ruins.  Sugar  was  first  introduced  about  this  period, 
and  the  Tower  first  constituted  a  royal  residence.  Stephen 
was  a  just  and  moderate  monarch,  and  at  his  death,  in  the 
year  1154,  the  kingdom  passed  quietly  into  the  hands  of  the 
house  of  Plantagenet. 

QUESTIONS  TO  CHAPTER  II. 

I.  What     proceedings    were 
taken  by  William  to  obtain  the 
crown  ?     In  what   way  did  he 
testify  his  gratitude  ?     In  what 
way  is  that   ceremony  perpet- 
uated ? 

II.  What      alteration      took 
place  in  the  character  of  Wil- 
liam I.  ?     What  wrongs  did  he 
inflict      upon      the      English  ? 
Whence  arose  the  mixed  char- 
acter of  our  language  ? 

III.  In   what  year  did   Wil- 
liam the  Conqueror  die,  and  by 
whom  was  he  succeeded  ?  What 
is  said  of  his  character  ?     Of  his 
reign  ?     What  invasion  was  un- 
dertaken by  William  Rufus  ? 

IV.  What  extraordinary  wars 
vvere  begun  during  this  reign  ? 
When   did  the  first  crusade  go 
out  ?     In  what  manner  did  the 
king  become  possessed  of  Nor- 
mandy ?    What  was  the  manner 
of  his  death  ?  When  did  he  die  ? 

V.  Who    succeeded    Rufus? 
What  steps  did  Henry  take  to 
secure   the    crown  ?     Who  was 
the   rightful   heir  ?     What  was 
the   result   of  the  war   between 
Henry  and    Robert  ?     For  how 
long  was  the  Duke  of  Normandy 
imprisoned  ? 

VI.  What  dreadful   accident 


occurred  to  King  Henry's  only 
son  ?  How  old  was  the  king 
when  he  died  ?  What  family 
did  he  leave  to  lament  his  loss  ? 
What  is  alleged  as  the  cause  of 
King  Henry's  death  ?  Who 
were  the  Knights  Templars  ? 
Relate  the  improvements  effect- 
ed during  this  reign.  When  did 
Henry  die  ? 

VII.  Who  was  Stephen,  and 
in  what  way  did  he  oppose  the 
claims  of  Matilda  ?     By  whom 
was  he  most  favorably  received  ? 
What  steps  did  he  take  to  secure 
the  favor  of  the  populace  ? 

VIII.  With  what  forces  did 
Matilda  land,  and  what  success 
had  she  ?     In  what  year  was  she 
crowned  ?     Did    she   long   con- 
tinue to  reign  }     With  what  ob- 
ject did  she  educate  her  son  ? 

IX.  What  was  the  character 
of   Prince   Henry  ?     When  did 
he   undertake   to   invade    Eng- 
land ?    Into  what  agreement  did 
the    king   enter  ?     What   great 
calamity  befell  the  city  of  Lon- 
don  during  this  reign  ?     What 
useful  condiment  was  first  intro- 
duced, and  to  what  purpose  was 
the  Tower  at  this  time  devoted  ? 
When    did    Stephen    die,    and 
what  ensued  ? 


ENGLISH    HISTORY. 


31 


CHAPTER    III. 


THE   HOUSE   OF  PLANTAGENET. 


Began  to  reign.    Died. 
HENRY  II.  A.  D.  1154  .  . .  1189 

RICHARD  I.  "     1189  . . .  1199 

JOHN  «     1199  .  .  .  1216 

HENRY  III.  «     1216  . . .  1272 


Began  to  reign.    Died. 
EDWARD  I.  A.  D.  1272  .  .  .  1307 

EDWARD  II.  "     1307  .  . .  1327 

EDWARD  III.  "     1327  .  . .  1377 

RICHARD  II.  «     1377  . . .  1399 


HENRY  II. 

BEGAN  TO  REIGN  A.  D.  1154.   DEED  1189. 

I.  HENRY  n.  was  the  most  powerful  monarch  of  his  time. 
He  subdued  Ireland  and  Wales,  and  ruled  over  a  larger  por- 
tion of  French  territory  than  the  King  of  France  himself. 
During  his  reign,  the  arrogance  and  ambition  of  the  clergy 
exceeded  ah1  bounds.  They  raised  immense  sums  by  taxes 
and  the  sale  of  pardons,  and  England  began  at  last  to  get 
impoverished  by  the  demands  of  Home.  This  the  king  re- 
solved manfully  to  oppose.  In  order  to  do  so  the  more 
effectually,  he  elevated  Thomas  a  Becket,  his  chancellor,  to 
the  priesthood,  and  even  made  him  Archbishop  of  Canter- 
bury, thinking  by  these  means  to  secure  a  valuable  rival  to 
the  Pope  of  Rome ;  but  herein  he  was  greatly  mistaken. 
A  Becket  was  a  man  of  inferior  birth  and  brilliant  talents, 
who  loved  power  and  splendor  better  than  any  thing  in  the 
world  ;  and  no  sooner  was  he  invested  with  these  new  digni- 
ties than  he  went  over  to  the  side  of  the  clergy,  supported 
them  in  all  their  AA.  °asures,  and  offered  a  more  determined 
resistance  to  King  Henry's  will  than  any  one  had  yet  done. 

H.  A  great  dissension  ensued,  during  which  the  king  and 
the  archbishop  mutually  defied  each  other.  A  Becket  ex- 
communicated several  of  the  bishops;  threatened  even  to 
excommunicate  the  king;  fled  over  to  the  continent,  and, 
being  at  length  pardoned,  was  permitted  to  return  to  his  dio- 
cese, after  years  of  negotiation.  Here  he  again  behaved  with 
euch  open  insolence,  that  Henry,  being  then  in  Normandy, 


32  OUTLINES    OP 

was  one  day  tempted  to  utter  a  rash  wish  for  his  death , 
whereupon  four  knights  crossed  over  to  England  for  the  pur- 
pose, and  murdered  the  defenceless  old  man  (A.  D.  1170) 
before  the  altar  of  Canterbury  Cathedral. 

ILL.  King  Henry  was  greatly  shocked,  and  even  did  pub- 
lic penance  l  at  the  tomb  of  A  Becket ;  but  from  this  time 
his  life  became  very  unhappy.  Frequent  wars  disturbed  the 
kingdom,  and,  being  appealed  to  by  one  of  the  native  Irish 
princes  for  assistance  against  a  neighboring  chieftain,  Henry 
invaded  and  subdued  Ireland,  (A.  D.  1172;)  annexed  that 
country  to  the  English  crown,  and  governed  there  by  means 
of  a  viceroy ;  thus  acting  over  again  the  part  taken  by  the 
Saxons,  when  first  summoned  over  to  England  by  the  native 
Britons.  Henry  also  conquered  in  Wales,  and  obtained  the 
first  ascendency  over  Scotland.  During  this  reign,  London 
bridge  was  rebuilt  in  stone ;  England  was  divided  into  six 
legal  circuits,  (A.  D.  1176  ;)  charters  were  granted  to  many 
towns ;  and  the  windows  of  private  dwelling  houses  were 
made  of  glass.  Henry's  sons  were  rebellious,  and  the  eldest 
died;  so  that  on  the  decease  of  the  king,  in  the  year  1189, 
he  was  succeeded  by  his  second  son,  Richard,  known  in  his- 
tory and  romance  as  Richard  the  Lion-hearted. 

RICHARD  L 

BEGAN  TO  REIGN  A.   D.    1189.      DIED    1199. 

IV.  King  RICHARD  I.  was  a  very  brave  soldier,  and  spent 
his  whole  reign  in  warfare  on  the  continent,  and  in  crusades 
to  the  Holy  Land.  He  can  scarcely  be  called  an  English 
king  at  all,  for  he  could  not  speak  one  word  of  Saxon,  and, 
although  he  was  king  for  ten  years,  passed  only  eight  months 
in  England.  Returning  from  the  East,  he  fell  into  the  power 

1  Having  approached  within  three  miles  of  Canterbury,  he  dismounted, 
walking  barefoot  over  the  flinty  road,  which  in  seme  places  he  marked  with 
blood,  to  the  consecrated  spot;  spent  there,  in  fasting  and  prayer,  a  day 
an.1  m>ht.;  and  even  presented  his  bare  shoulders  to  be  scourged  by  the 
monks  with  a  knotted  cord. 


ENGLISH    HISTORY.  33 

of  Leopold,  Duke  of  Austria,  by  whom  he  was  detained  in 
prison  till  ransomed  by  his  faithful  subjects.  Richard  fell 
while  besieging  the  Castle  of  Chalus,  near  Limoges,  in  France, 
and  was  succeeded  in  1199  by  his  brother  John. 

JOHN. 
BEGAN  TO  REIGN  A.  D.  1199.    DIED  1216. 

V.  JOHN  was  one  of  the  worst  and  meanest  kings  that 
ever  reigned  in  England.  His  name  has  come  down  to  pos- 
terity as  a  type  of  baseness,  cowardice,  and  treachery.  Out- 
raged by  his  oppressions,  and  emboldened  by  his  weaknesses, 
the  barons  compelled  this  monarch  to  sign  that  signal  ratifi- 
cation of  English  liberties  and  rights  which  is  famous  in  the 
annals  of  England  as  the  "  Magna  Charta,"  or  Great  Char- 
ter.1 This  event  took  place  in  1215,  at  Runny mede,  near 
Windsor.  The  Cinque  Ports2  during  this  reign  were  en- 
dowed with  additional  privileges;  the  first  standing  army 
was  levied  in  England ;  and  the  establishment  of  an  annual 
election  for  the  lord  mayor  and  sheriffs  of  the  city  of  London 
instituted.  King  John  was  deprived  of  his  French  provinces, 

1  By  this  charter,  he  pledged  himself  to  maintain  the  chnrch  in  its  rights ; 
to  relieve  the  barons  of  oppressive  obligations  to  the  crown  ;  to  respect  the 
liberties  of  London,  and  all  other  cities  and  boroughs;  to  protect  foreign 
merchants,  who  came  to  England ;  to  imprison  no  man  without  a  fair  trial ; 
and  to  sell,  delay,  or  deny  justice  to  no  one.    From  this  time,  the  feudal 
system  began  to  decline ;  the  free  citizens  became  more  independent ;  and 
the  lower  orders  were  gradually  released  from  bondage,  and  became  a  free 
people. 

2  The  Cinque  Ports,  so  called  by  way  of  eminence,  are  five  havens  that 
lie  towards  France,  which  are  vigilantly  preserved  against  invasion.    Wil- 
liam tho  Conqueror  first  appointed  a  warden  of  the  Cinque  Ports;  but  King 
John  first  granted  them  their  privileges,  upon  condition  that  they  should 
provide  eighty  ships  at  their  own  charges,  for  forty  days,  as  often  as  the 
king  should  have  occasion  in  the  wars;    he  being  then  straitened  for  a 
navy  to  recover  Normandy.    The  Five  Ports  are  Hastings,  Romney,  Hythe, 
Dover,  and  Sandwich.    The  privileges  granted  to  them  were  very  givat. 
Each  of  them  were  to  send  two  barons  to  represent  them  in  Parliament; 
f  »y  were  exempted  from  subsidies  and  other  aid? ;  their  heirs  were  to  b« 
free  from  personal  wardship ;  and  many  other  privileges, 

3* 


34  OUTLINES    OF 

in  consequence  of  the  cruelty  with  which  he  treated  the  chil- 
dren of  his  elder  brother  Geoffrey.  Prince  Arthur,  his  young 
nephew,  and  heir  to  the  crown,  was  murdered  by  his  com- 
mand at  the  Castle  of  Rouen,  A.  D.  1202 ;  and  Arthur's 
sister,  the  Princess  Eleanor,  called  the  Damsel  of  Brittany, 
was  imprisoned  in  Bristol  Castle,  where  she  died  A.  D.  1241. 
King  John  reigned  for  seventeen  years,  and  died  universally 
detested. 

HENRY  III. 

BEGAN  TO  REIGN  A.  D.    1216.      DIED   1272. 

VL  King  HENRY  III.  was  but  nine  years  of  age  when  he 
received  the  crown,  and  for  many  years  the  kingdom  was 
governed  by  his  guardians.  He  was  of  a  weak  and  irresolute 
character,  and  during  his  reign  tried  to  abolish  Magna  Charta. 
All  London,  and  the  chief  landholders  and  inhabitants  of  the 
county  towns,  rose  in  defence  of  their  liberties,  and  the  king, 
with  his  son,  was  defeated  and  imprisoned,  and  forced  once 
more  to  confirm  the  safety  of  his  people.  The  assembling 
of  the  nobles  and  burgesses  of  England  at  this  juncture 
(A.  D.  1258,)  is  considered  to  be  the  first  outline  of  the 
Commons'  Parliament.  Coal  began  to  be  used  for  firing  in 
this  reign ;  a  license  was  granted  to  the  people  of  Newcastle 
for  the  working  of  their  mines.  Gold  coinage,  also,  was  in- 
troduced, and  the  art  of  distillation  derived  from  the  Moors. 
After  a  feeble  reign  of  fifty-six  years,  King  Henry  III.  died, 
in  the  year  1272,  and  was  succeeded  by  Edward,  his  eldest 
son. 

EDWARD  I. 

BEGAN  TO  REIGN  A.  D.  1272.   DIED  1307. 

VII.  EDWARD  I.,  a  clear-headed,  resolute,  and  military 
monarch,  grasped  the  sceptre  with  a  hand  of  iron.  He  added 
further  privileges  to  Magna  Charta,1  granted  the  freedoms  of 

1  Edward  added  an  important  clause  to  the  Magna  Charta,  to  secure  the 
people  from  the  imposition  of  any  tax  without  the  consent  of  Parliament. 
Ever  since  his  reign,  there  has  been  a  regular  succession  of  Parliaments. 


ENGLISH   HISTORY.  oO 

the  Cinque  Ports,  created  his  son  first  Prince  of  Wales,  after 
having  subdued  that  country,  and,  in  honor  of  the  useful 
laws  which  he  enacted,  obtained  the  name  of  the  English 
Justinian.  Gunpowder  was  invented  during  the  reign  of  this 
king  by  the  celebrated  Roger  Bacon;  paper  was  brought 
from  the  East  by  the  crusaders ;  wine  was  sold  as  a  cordial 
by  the  apothecaries ;  and  the  mariner's  compass  was  invented 
by  one  Gioja,  of  Naples.  Westminster  Abbey,  the  rebuilding 
of  which  had  been  completed  by  Henry  III.  (1245),  received 
additions,  and  great  advances  were  made  in  literature,  social 
science,  and  general  civilization.  Edward  I.  died  A.  D.  1307. 

EDWARD  II. 

BEGAN  TO  REIGN  A.  D.    1307.      DIED    1327. 

VIII.  EDWARD  II.,  son  of  Edward  I.,  ascended  the  throne 
fn  1307.  Of  a  character  and  disposition  the  very  reverse  of 
his  father's,  the  young  king  lost  the  confidence  and  re- 
spect of  his  people,  suffered  his  nobles  to  gain  undue  power, 
and  was  wholly  governed  by  foreign  favorites.  In  the  year 
1314,  Edward  invaded  Scotland;  and  on  June  24th,  the  fa- 
mous battle  of  Bannockburn  took  place,  in  which  Robert 
Bruce,  with  only  30,000  Scots,  signally  defeated  the  royal 
army,  consisting  of  100,000  men.  King  Edward  narrowly 
escaped  with  life ;  50,000  English  were  killed  or  taken  pris- 
oners, and  the  name  of  the  northern  hero  was  crowned  with 
undying  glory.  In  1322,  a  rebellion,  headed  by  the  Earl  of 
Lancaster,  was  crushed  at  Boroughbridge,  in  Yorkshire,  and 
that  nobleman  was  punished  with  death.  Not  long  after  this 
event,  the  powerful  barons  coalesced  against  the  favorites,  and 
the  weak  monarch  whom  they  governed.  They  executed 
first  Piers  Gaveston,  the  Gascon,  and  then  Hugh  de  Spenser 
and  his  son,  all  of  whom  had  richly  deserved  the  accumulated 
hatred  and  scorn  of  l>oth  nobles  and  people.  Edward  then 
withdrew  into  Wales,  pursued  by  the  Earl  of  Leicester. 
Even  his  wife,  a  princess  of  France,  took  up  arms  against 
him,  and  conducted  the  rebellion  of  the  barons.  This  pusil- 


36  OUTLINES    OF 

lanimous  king  was  compelled  at  length  to  abdicate  the 
throne,  and  yield  himself  prisoner,  when  he  was  confined  in 
Berkeley  Castle,  Gloucestershire,  and  horribly  put  to  death, 
(A.  D.  1 327.)1  During  the  reign  of  Edward  II,,  the  House  of 
Commons  first  began  to  annex  petitions  to  their  bills ;  the 
society  of  Knights  Templars  was  suppressed,  after  having  at- 
tained the  highest  influence  in  Europe  j  the  University  of 
Dublin  was  founded  j  and  the  interest  of  money  rose  to  the 
usurious  rate  of  forty-five  per  cent. 

EDWARD  III. 

BEGAN  TO  REIGN  A.  D.  1327,  DIED   1377. 

IX,  King  EDWARD  III,  succeeded  his  unhappy  father  in 
the  year  1327.2  A  more  powerful  monarch  England  never 
acknowledged.  He  subdued  Scotland,  invaded  France,  and, 
without  any  reason  save  ambition  and  the  love  of  fighting, 
claimed  the  crown  of  that  country  for  himself.  It  was  upon 
this  occasion  that  the  famous  battle  of  Cressy  was  fought, 
(A.  D.  1346,)  when  Edward's  son,  known  in  history  as  the 
Black  Prince,3  won  immortal  fame  by  his  intrepidity  and 
coolness  —  a  fame  which  he  more  than  doubled  some  few 
years  after,  at  the  great  battle  of  Poictiers,  (A.  D.  1356.) 
During  this  reign  London  contained  at  one  time  two  captive 
kings  —  John  of  France  and  David  of  Scotland.  The  latter 
remained  prisoner  in  England  for  eleven  years ;  and  the  for- 
mer, failing  in  his  endeavor  to  raise  the  sum  stipukted  for 


1  Isabella,  his  queen,  had  fixed  her  affections  upon  Roger  Mortimer,  a 
youthful  baron ;  and  they  conspired  together  to  compel  Edward  to  resign 
his  crown  to  his  son.    The  king  was  put  to  death  by  order  of  Mortimer. 

2  When  Edward  was  proclaimed  king,  he  was  but  fourteen  years  of  age, 
and  a  regency  consisting  of  twelve  men  was  appointed  "  to  hare  the  rule 
and  government "  of  the  country ;  yot  Mortimer  and  Isabella  had  the  chief 
control.    When  Edward  assumed  the  government,  however,  Mortimer  was 
hanged  upon  a  gibbet,  by  order  of  Parliament,  and  Isabella  was  imprisoned 
for  life. 

3  He  was  called  the  Black  Prince  from  the  color  or  covering  of  his  armor, 


ENGLISH   HISTORY.  37 

his  ransom,  surrendered  himself  to  a  life  of  honorable  cap- 
tivity at  the  court  of  his  conqueror,  and  died  at  the  old  palace 
of  the  Savoy,  in  the  Strand,  which  at  that  time  was  studded 
with  parks  and  country  seats,  and  formed  no  part  of  the  city 
of  London. 

During  this  reign,  a  fearful  pestilence,  known  as  the  black 
death,  raged  throughout  Europe,  and  is  estimated  to  have 
cost  more  life  than  all  the  wars  of  King  Edward  III.  Wind- 
sor Castle  now  fell  into  disuse  as  a  fortress,  and  was  reserved 
exclusively  for  the  residence  of  royalty ;  the  art  of  paint- 
ing in  oils  was  perfected  by  Van  Eyck ;  cloth  weaving  was 
introduced  from  Flanders ;  and  the  Lords  and  Commons  for 
the  first  time  occupied  separate  chambers  at  Westminster. 
In  1376  the  Black  Prince  died,  leaving  one  child  to  the  care 
of  the  old  king,  who  followed  his  valiant  son  to  the  grave 
before  a  year  was  over. 

RICHARD  II. 

BEGAN  TO  REIGN  A.  D.  1377.      DIED    1399. 

X.  RICHARD  II.,  son  of  the  Black  Prince,  and  the  kst 
representative  of  the  House  of  Plantagenet,  was  only  eleven 
years  of  age  when  the  kingdom  of  England  devolved  to  him  by 
right  of  birth,  (A.  D.  1377.)  He  was  indolent,  prodigal,  and 
perfidious.  The  conquests  and  expeditions  of  his  father  and 
grandfather  had  added  to  the  glory,  but  diminished  the  wealth, 
of  the  nation  ;  and  during  the  long  minority  which  unavoida- 
bly followed  his  accession,  the  nobles,  as  usual,  were  rebel- 
lious, and  the  people  discontented.  A  tax  of  three  groats  (or 
three  fourpenny  pieces)  being  unjustly  levied  on  every  person 
in  the  kingdom,  male  and  female,  above  the  age  of  fifteen 
years,  (A.  D.  1381,)  the  people  rose  in  open  rebellion,  head- 
ed by  Wat  Tyler,  whom  they  chose  for  their  leader.  This 
rebellion  was  suppressed  by  the  young  king,  at  that  time 
only  sixteen  years  of  age,  who  immediately  granted  to  them 
the  concessions  which  they  demanded.  These,  however,  he 


38  OUTLINES    OF 

afterwards  revoked,  and  proved  himself  to  be  a  more  fickle  and 
feeble  sovereign  than  even  Edward  II. 

In  the  year  1398,  the  Duke  of  Gloucester,  upon  suspicion 
of  treason,  was  imprisoned  at  Calais,  and  there  murdered ; 
which  act  of  oppression  gave  great  offence  to  the  Parliament 
and  people.  This  being  the  case,  Richard  found  none  to  de- 
fend or  pity  him,  when  his  cousin,  Henry  of  Lancaster,  whom 
he  had  previously  banished,  returned  suddenly  from  exile,  as- 
sembled an  army  of  sixty  thousand  men,  seized  upon  the  su- 
preme authority,  and  after  compelling  Richard  to  sign  his 
abdication,  confined  that  unfortunate  sovereign  in  Pontefract 
Castle,  Yorkshire,  and  there  had  him  basely  murdered,  thus 
terminating  the  lordly  and  brilliant  line  of  Plantagenet 
kings. 

Richard  II.  in  1397  repaired  Westminster  Hall,  and  lived 
more  royally  than  any  of  his  predecessors.  His  household 
consisted  of  no  less  than  ten  thousand  persons,  and  in  matters 
of  fashion  he  set  the  most  luxurious  and  costly  example. 
The  old  English  poet  Geoffrey  Chaucer  flourished  during 
this  reign  ;  William  of  Wykeham,  distinguished  for  his  learn- 
ing and  piety,  and  famous  as  the  founder  of  Winchester 
School,  and  New  College,  Oxford,  lived  ;  and  John  Wicliffe, 
the  herald  of  the  great  reformation,  expired  A.  D.  1385,  in 
his  rectory  at  Lutterworth,  Leicester. 

QUESTIONS  TO   CHAPTER  III. 

I.  Name   the  possessions  of  der  what  circumstances,  did  the 
Henry  II.     Of  what  errors  were  king  subdue    Ireland  ?     Name 
the    clergy    guilty   during   this  the  other  conquests  of  Henry  II. 
reign?     Who    was    Thomas    a  Relate  the  remarkable  improvc- 
Becket,  and  to  what  rank  was  ments  effected  during  this  reign. 
he  elevated  ?  What    were   his    domestic   sor- 

II.  Relate  the  circumstances  rows  ?     When  did  he  die,   and 
of  the  quarrel  between  the  king  by  whom  was  he  succeeded  ? 
and  the  archbishop.     What  was  IV.   What  was  the  character 
the  manner   of  his  death  ?     In  of    llichard    I.  ?      Was    he    a 
what  year  was  he  murdered  ?  thorough    Englishman  ?     What 

III.  What  testimony  of  grief       disaster  befell  him  in  Austria  ? 
did  Henry  show  for  A  Becket's      By  whom  was  he  succeeded,  and 
death  ?    In  what  year,  and  un-      in  what  year  ? 


ENGLISH    HISTORY. 


39 


V.  Describe  the  character  and 
disposition  of  John.     What  was 
the  great  event  of  this  reign  ? 
In  what  year  was  Magna  Charta 
signed  ?      How   did   John   lose 
his     French     provinces  ?      For 
how  long  did  John  reign  ? 

VI.  By  whom  was  King  John 
succeeded,  and    in  what  year  ? 
What  was  the  age  of  Henry  III. 
when  he  received    the   crown  ? 
In  what  way  did  he  infringe  the 
liberties  of  the    people?     How 
did  they  show  their  resentment  ? 
In  what  year  did  the  nobles  and 
burgesses   meet  ?     What   great 
body  politic  was  outlined  at  this 
time  ?     How    long    did    Henry 
reign,  and  by  whom  was  he  suc- 
ceeded ? 

VII.  What  privileges  did  Ed- 
ward I.   grant  to   his  people  ? 
Who  was  the  first    Prince    of 
Wales  ?     What  name  did  King 
Edward     obtain  ?      What     re- 
markable inventions  took  place 
during  his  reign  ? 

VIII.  When  did  Edward  II. 
ascend  the  throne  ?    What  was 
the  character  of  this  king  ?     In 
what  way  was  he  opposed  by  his 
wife  ?    What  was  his  end  ? 


IX.  Who  succeeded  Edward 
II.,  and  in  what  year  ?     What 
were  the  warlike  enterprises  of 
Edward  III.  ?      What    famous 
battles  were  fought  in  this  reign, 
when  did  they  take  place,  and 
who    was    the   hero    of   both  ? 
What   two    kings   were  at  one 
time      captives     in      London  ? 
Where  did  John  of  France  die  ? 
Relate  the  chief  events  of  this 
reign.     When    did    the    Black 
Prince  die,    and  how  soon  after 
did  the  king  his  father  follow 
him  to  the  grave  ? 

X.  How  old  was  Richard  II. 
when  he  ascended  the  throne  ? 
What     was      his      character  ? 
What    was    the    state    of    the 
kingdom,  and  why  did  the  peo- 
ple rebel  ?     Who  suppressed  the 
rebellion  ?    What  sort  of  a  mon- 
arch was  Richard   II.  ?     What 
was  the  fate  of  the  Duke  of 
Gloucester  ?     Who  deposed  the 
king  ?    Where  was  he  impris- 
oned,  and  in  what  way  did  he 
die  ?     In  what   year    did  these 
events    happen  ?     What    great 
men     nourished     during     this 
reign  ? 


CHAPTER    IV. 


THE   HOUSES   OF   LANCASTER  AND  YORK. 


Began  to  reign.  "Died. 
HENRY  IV.  A.  D.  1399  .  .  .  1413. 

IlENRYV.  "      1413  ...  14-22. 

HENRY  VI.  "    1422 ...     ? 


Began  to  reign.  Died. 
EDWARD  IV.  A.  D.  1461  . .  .  1483. 
EDWARD  V.  «  1483  .  .  .  1483. 

RICHARD  III.          «    1483  .  . .  1485. 


HENRY  IV. 

BEGAN  TO  REIGN  A.  D.  1399.      DIED    1413. 

I.   HENRY  IV.,  surnamed  Bolingbroke  from  the  place  of  his 
birth,  had  no  legal  right  to  the  English  crown.     He  was  a 


40  OUTLINES    OF 

usurper,1  and  the  career  of  a  usurper  is  not  frequently  happy. 
That  of  Henry  IV.  was  peculiarly  wretched,  imbittered  hy 
the  desertion  of  his  friends,  troubled  by  the  animosities  of 
his  barons,  disturbed  by  conspiracies,  and  endangered  by  open 
rebellions  of  the  Scots  and  the  Welsh.2  He  was  also  grieved 
by  the  excesses  of  the  Prince  of  Wales,  who,  though  brave  and 
generous-hearted  enough,  gave  himself  up  to  every  kind  of 
dissipation  and  self-indulgence,  and  was  even  sent,  on  one  oc- 
casion, to  prison  by  Judge  Gascoigne,  for  contempt  of  court.3 
Henry  IV.  attached  himself  zealously  to  the  established 
religion,  and  having  constituted  himself  the  champion  of  the 
church,  became  also  the  persecutor  of  Wicliffe's  adherents. 
The  Rev.  Sir  William  Sautre,  Rector  of  St.  Oswyth,  London, 
fell  a  victim  to  the  king's  mistaken  bigotry,  (A.  D.  1401,) 
and  was  the  first  person  burned  in  England  for  his  religious 
opinions.  The  order  of  the  Bath  was  instituted  during  this 
reign,  and  cannon  were  first  used  in  England  at  the  siege  of 
Berwick,  (A.  D.  1405.)  In  the  year  1407,  thirty  thousand 
persons  died  of  the  plague ;  and  in  the  course  of  the  same 
year,  James,  son  of  Robert  III.,  King  of  Scotland,  was  seized 
off  Flamborough  Head,  whilst  on  his  way  to  France,  and 
notwithstanding  that  there  was  peace  between  the  Scots  and 
English  at  that  time,  was  detained  prisoner  in  England 
and  not  released  till  the  sum  of  £40,000  was  paid  over  for 
his  ransom,  in  the  year  1423.  Henry  IV.  died  at  West- 

1  Edmund  Mortimer  was  the  true  heir  to  the  crown,  being  descended  from 
Lionel,  the  third  son  of  Edward  III.,  whereas  Henry  was  the  son  of  John  of 
Gaunt,  the  fourth  son  of  Edward  III.    Hence  began  the  contests  between 
the  houses  of  York  and  Lancaster. 

2  The  Scots  under  Douglas,  and  the  Welsh  under  Owen  Glendower,  took 
part  with  the  rebels.    They  were,  however,    defeated    at  the  battle  of 
Shrewsbury,  A.  D.  1403,  and  their  leader,  Percy,  (Hotspur,)  who,  provoked 
by  the  supposed  neglect  of  the  king,  had  taken  arms  against  him,  was 
killed. 

8  When  the  king  was  told  that  the  prince  was  committed  to  priscti,  he 
exclaimed,  "  Happy  is  thte  king  who  has  a  magistrate  endowed  with  courage 
to  execute  the  laws  upon  such  an  offender ;  still  more  happy  in  having  a 
$  a  willing  to  submit  to  such  chastisement." 


ENGLISH   HISTORY.  41 

minster  in  1413,  after  a  reign  of  fourteen  years,  and  a  turbu- 
lent life  of  forty-six. 

HENRY  V, 

BEGAN  TO  HEIGN  A.  D.    1413.      DIED   1422. 

IL  King  HENRY  V.  had  no  sooner  succeeded  to  the 
throne,  than,  much  to  the  surprise  of  all  the  nation,  he  re- 
formed his  life,  and  showed  himself  a  temperate,  just,  and 
wise  sovereign.  The  great  event  of  his  reign  was  the  con- 
quest of  France,  when  he  won  the  celebrated  battles  of  Har- 
fleur  and  Agincourt,  (A.  D.  1415,)  and  was  recognized  heir 
to  Charles  VL  He  then  married  the  Princess  Catharine  oi 
France,  the  nobles  swore  obedience  to  him,  and  it  was  con- 
cluded by  treaty  that  upon  the  death  of  Charles  the  two 
kingdoms  were  to  be  -united  in  the  English  croivn.  In  the 
month  of  May,  1422,  Henry,  with  his  queen  and  his  infant  son, 
-visited  France,  entered  Paris  in  all  the  pomp  of  a  royal  prog- 
ress, and  dazzled  the  Parisians  with  the  wealth,  power,  and 
triumph  of  their  future  sovereigns,  Henry  V.  carried  on 
that  persecution  of  the  Wicliffites  which  his  father  began, 
and  treated  them  with  inexcusable  severity.  Sir  John  Old- 
castle,  Lord  Cobham,  was  burned  in  St  Giles's  Fields  for  his 
leaning  towards  the  Protestant  faith,  and  was  the  first  among 
the  English  nobility  who  suffered  the  extreme  penalty  of  the 
law  for  his  religious  opinions.  Linen  shirts  and.  under-clothing 
were  at  the  time  esteemed  great  luxuries,  and  a  flock  bed, 
with  a  chaff  bolster,  was  a  refinement  of  comfort  known  only 
to  the  wealthiest.  From  the  reign  of  Henry  V.  may  also  be 
dated  the  custom  of  lighting  the  streets  of  London  at  night, 
since  it  was  at  his  command  that  every  citizen  was  compelled 
to  hang  a  lantern  on  his  door  during  the  winter  months. 
From  the  same  period  may  also  be  dated  the  first  establish- 
ment of  a  permanent  naval  force ;  and  one  ship,  built  at 
Bayonne  expressly  for  the  king,  was  esteemed  quite  a  marvel 
of  size  and  strength,  because  it  measured  one  hundred  and 
4 


42  OUTLINES    OP 

eighty-six  feet  in  length.  Just  at  the  most  brilliant  epoch 
in  his  career,  died  Henry  V.,  in  1422,  at  the  early  age  of 
thirty-four. 

HENRY   VI. 

BEGAN  TO  REIGN  A.  D.  1422.      PERIOD  OF  DEATH  UNCERTAIN. 

III.  HENRY  VI.,  son  to  the  late  king,  was  only  nine 
months  old  at  the  death  of  his  father  ;  whereupon  the  Dukes 
of  Bedford  and  Gloucester  were  made  protectors  during  the 
regal  minority,  the  former  for  France  and  the  latter  for  Eng- 
land. In  this  reign,  Charles  VII.,  the  Dauphin  of  France,  be- 
ing supported  by  the  French  people,  attempted  to  recover  his 
kingdom.  A  village  girl,  from  a  remote  part  of  Lorraine, 
fancied  herself  divinely  inspired,  placed  herself  at  the  head 
of  the  French  army,  and  by  dint  of  undaunted  courage  and 
patriotism,  won  victory  after  victory,  and  crowned  the  French 
king  at  the  city  of  Rheims,  (A.  D.  1429.)  Being  taken  pris- 
oner after  this  by  the  English,  they  were  cowardly  enough  to 
burn  her  at  the  stake.  This  girl  is  known  in  history  as  Joan 
of  Arc,  the  Maid  of  Orleans. 

TV.  Thus  by  degrees  the  French  wrested  back  their  coun- 
try from  the  English,  and  in  a  few  years  Calais  alone  re- 
mained a  dependency  of  the  state.  In  the  midst  of  these 
losses,  the  troubles  of  a  disputed  succession  again  threatened 
the  safety  of  the  young  and  feeble  sovereign,  (A.  D.  1450,) 
and  the  house  of  York,  represented  by  Duke  Richard,  fo- 
mented insurrections  among  the  people.  In  the  battles  of 
St.  Albans  and  Northampton,  the  Lancastrians  were  defeated, 
and  Henry  was  taken  prisoner ;  but  Queen  Margaret1  hav- 
ing raised  a  large  army,  gained  the  battle  of  Wakefield 
Green,  (A.  D.  1460,)  and  the  Duke  of  York  was  defeated  and 
slain. 

V.   At  this  period  the  Earl  of  Warwick  (called  the  "  King- 

1  Henry  VI.  married  Margaret  of  Anjou,  a  woman  of  keen  penetration, 
undaunted  spirit,  and  great  beauty.  She  fought  twelve  pitdied  battles  in 
her  husband's  cause. 


ENGLISH    HISTORY.  43 

maker")  took  up  the  cause  of  young  Edward,  son  to  the 
late  Duke  of  York,  imprisoned  Henry  in  the  Tower  of  Lon- 
don, and  fixed  Edward  upon  the  throne,  under  the  title  of 
King  Edward  IV.1  Still  the  civil  wars  continued  unabated. 
The  Yorkists  bore  a  white  rose  for  their  emblem,  and  the 
Lancastrians  fought  under  the  ensign  of  a  red  one.  Hence 
these  contests  are  generally  styled  the  "  Wars  of  the  Roses." 
The  date  of  Henry's  death  is  uncertain ;  but  it  is  said  that 
the  king's  brother,  Richard  of  Gloucester,  murdered  him  in 
his  chamber  at  the  Tower. 

VI.  In  this  reign  the  right  of  voting  at  elections  for 
knights  of  the  shire  was  limited  to  freeholders  possessed  of 
estates  to  the  annual  value  of  forty  shillings.     Seats  in  the 
Commons  were  not,  however,  much  sought  by  the  middle 
classes  of  the  fifteenth  century.     The  functions  of  the  Com- 
mons consisted  chiefly  in  the  imposition  of  taxes,  and  even 
the  Lords  of  that  period  evinced  little  interest  or  assiduity  in 
the  discharge  of  their  parliamentary  duties.     Both  houses 
enjoyed  entire  liberty  of  speech.     Eton  College,  and  King's 
College,  Cambridge,  were  founded  about  A.  D.  1440.     The 
art  of  printing  from  movable  types  was  invented  about  this 
time.     In  1450  the  first  Lord  Mayor's  Show  took  place,  and 
the  same  year  was  signalized  by  the  famous  insurrection  in 
Kent,  headed  by  one  Jack  Cade,  who,  under  the  assumed 
name  of  Mortimer,  asserted  a  fictitious  right  to  the  English 
throne,  but  was  defeated  and  killed. 

EDWARD  IV. 

BEGAN  TO  REIGN  A.   D.    1461.     DIED   1483. 

VII.  King  EDWARD  IV.  was  a  very  handsome,  but  a  very 
capricious  and  tyrannical  sovereign.     He  married  Lady  Eliza- 

1  The  houses  of  York  and  Lancaster  were  both  descended  from  Edward 
III.,  that  of  York  from  his  third  son,  and  that  of  Lancaster  from  his  fourth : 
the  rightful  title  was,  therefore,  on  the  side  of  the  former. 


44  OUTLINES    OP 

beth  Grey,  daughter  to  Sir  Richard  Woodville,  and  widow  of 
Sir  John  Grey.  This  is  the  first  instance,  since  the  Conquest, 
of  an  English  king  being  married  to  a  subject.  The  circum- 
stance gave  great  offence  to  the  Earl  of  Warwick,  who  re- 
belled in  consequence.  By  his  exertions  Edward  was 
deposed,  and  Henry,  after  having  been  a  prisoner  six  years  in 
the  Tower,  was  released,  and  again  proclaimed  king ;  but  at 
the  battle  of  Barnet  (A.  D.  1471)  Edward  prevailed  and 
Warwick  was  slain.  Edward  died  (A.  D.  1483)  just  as  he 
was  preparing  for  a  war  with  France,  and  left  his  infant  sons, 
Edward  V.  and  Richard,  Duke  of  York,  to  the  guardianship 
of  his  wily  and  ambitious  brother,  Richard,  Duke  of  Glouces- 
ter. This  prince,  seeing  but  these  children  between  himself 
and  the  sceptre,  had  them  conveyed  to  the  Tower,  and  there 
murdered.  He  was  acknowledged  king  in  1483,  six  months 
after  the  death  of  his  brother,  Edward  IV. 

VIII.  During  the  reign  of  Edward  IV.,  the  first  printing 
press  was  set  up  in  England,  by  William  Caxton,  (A.  D.  1471,) 
and  polite  literature  was  encouraged  among  the  English. 

RICHARD  III. 

BEGAN  TO  EEIGN  A.  D.    1483.      DIED    1485. 

IX.  RICHARD  HI.,  during  a  short  reign   of  two  years, 
committed  such  atrocious  deeds  as  have  left  him  the  blackest 
reputation  of  any  sovereign  upon  the  records  of  English  his- 
tory.    Not  only  did  he  murder  his  young  nephews,  but  he 
put  to  death  his  brother,  the  Duke  of  Clarence,  the  generous 
Lord  Hastings,  the  unfortunate  Jane  Shore,  and  his  own 
friend  and  ally  the  Duke   of  Buckingham.     The  Earl  of 
Richmond,  a  wise  and  brave  nobleman,  related  to  the  house 
of  Lancaster  by  the  marriage  of  his  father,  Edmund  Tudor, 
to  Margaret,  the  great  granddaughter  of  John  of  Gaunt, 
asserted  his  claim  to  the  crown  of  England,  (A.  D.  1485,) 
assembled  a  small  army  of  about   two  thousand   persons, 
which  became  speedily  augmented  to  three  times  that  nunr 


ENGLISH    HISTORY.  45 

her,  came  over  from  Normandy,  landed  on  the  Welsh  coast, 
and  drew  up  his  forces  near  Bosworth  Field.  On  the  22d 
of  August,  1485,  he  was  met  by  King  Richard,  who  fell  in 
the  thickest  of  the  fight,  and  Richmond  received  the  crown 
upon  the  battle  field,  in  the  presence  of  his  army,  which  sa- 
luted him  as  King  Henry  VII.  Thus  ended  the  civil  wars 
which  had  convulsed  England  for  more  than  forty  years,  and 
the  royalty  of  the  houses  of  Lancaster  and  York. 

During  the  reign  of  these  two  families,  (a  period  of  nearly 
one  hundred  years,)  art,  civilization,  and  science  had  made 
very  considerable  progress.  Music  was  much  cultivated,  es- 
pecially by  the  clergy ;  painting  met  with  the  most  earnest 
encouragement,  and  was  employed  in  the  universal  decoration 
of  the  churches ;  books,  though  still  very  expensive,  became 
purchasable  by  others  than  the  most  wealthy,  in  consequence 
of  the  invention  of  printing ;  many  of  the  most  esteemed 
colleges  and  public  schools  date  their  foundation  from  this 
period;  the  language  became  more  refined,  and  received 
something  like  a  standard  in  the  works  of  Gower,  Chaucer, 
and  others;  and  the  style  of  architecture,  raised  on  the 
crumbling  ruins  of  the  feudal  castles,  rose  into  a  stately  and 
beautiful  order  of  ornamental  building  known  as  the  perpen- 
dicular Gothic.  The  civil  wars  of  this  period,  however,  op- 
erated fatally  upon  the  efforts  of  agricultural  science.  Many 
prosperous  and  pleasant  dwellings  throughout  England  were 
laid  waste,  and  within  twelve  miles'  range  of  Warwick  alone, 
sixty  villages  are  stated  to  have  been  entirely  destroyed. 

QUESTIONS  TO   CHAPTER  IV. 

I.  What  caused  the  sorrows  duct     on     succeeding    to    the 
of    King   Henry    IV.?      What  throne?    What  was  the   great 
was  the  conduct  of  the  Prince  event    of   this    reign  ?      When 
of    Wales  ?      What     sect    did  were  the  battles  of  Harfleur  and 
Henry  IV.  persecute,  and  who  Agincourt  fought?     To   whom 
was  the  first  aristocratic  victim  ?  was  Henry  V.  married  ?     When 
What  customs  were  introduced  did  he  die,  and  at  what  age  ? 

in  this  reign  ?  When  did  the  III.  How  old  was  Henry  VI. 
king  die,  and  at  what  age  ?  at  the  time  of  his  father's  death  ? 

II.  What  was  the  king's  con-      What  loss  did  England  sustain 


4G 


OUTLINES    OF 


during   this  reign  ?    Relate  the 
history  of  Joan  of  Arc. 

IV.  What  part  of  the  French 
territory    alone    remained     at- 
tached  to   the  English  crown  ? 
What  new  troubles  threatened 
the  safety  of  the  young  king  ? 
What  was  the  fate  of  the  Duke 
of  York  ?     When  was  the  bat- 
tle of  Wakefield  Green  fought  ? 

V.  Who   was    the    Earl    of 
Warwick,   and  what  measures 
did  he  take  against  Henry  VI.  ? 
What  were  the  emblems  of  the 
two    parties  ?     What  was    the 
manner  of  King  Henry's  death  ? 

VI.  Relate  the   condition  of 
the  Houses  of  Lords  and  Com- 
mons    at    this     time.       What 
schools  were  founded,  and  what 
improvements  introduced  ?  Who 
was  Jack  Cade  ? 

VII.  What  was  the  character 
of  King  Edward  IV.  ?     Whom 
did  he  marry,  and  what  became 
of  the  Earl  of  Warwick  ?  When 
did  he  die?    What  became  of 


his  two  infant  sons?  When 
was  the  Duke  of  Gloucester  ac- 
knowledged king  ? 

VIII.  What     signal      event 
happened  in  this  reign  ? 

IX.  For  how  long  did  Rich- 
ard III.  reign,  and  what  reputa- 
tion  has    he   left  behind  him? 
Who   were   the   victims   of   his 
cruelty    and    ambition  ?     What 
was  the  lineage  of  the  Earl  of 
Richmond  ?     What  was  the  size 
of   his   army,   and    from    what 
country   did    he    coirte   over  to 
claim  the  crown  ?    In  what  year 
did  he  land,  and  where  draw  up 
his  forces  ?     What  was  the  re* 
suit  of  the  battle  of  Bosworth  ? 
When  was  it  fought  ?    How  long 
had  the  civil  wars  raged  in  Eng- 
land ? 

X.  Relate  the  improvements 
which  had  now  taken  place  in 
the  arts,  sciences,  architecture, 
and     civilization     of    England. 
What  was  the  effect  of  the  civil 
wars  on  agriculture  ? 


CHAPTER  V. 
THE  HOUSE  OF  TUDOR. 


Began  to  reign.  Died. 
HENRY  VII.  A.  D.  1485  . . .  1509. 
HENRY  VIII.  "  1509  .  .  .  1547. 

EDWARD  VI.  "    1547  . . .  1553. 


MARY 
ELIZABETH 


Began  to  reign.    Died. 

A.  D.  1553  . . .  1558. 

«     1558  . . .  1603. 


HENRY  VII. 

BEGAN  TO  REIGN  A.  D.    1485.      DIED    1509. 

I.  HENRY  VIL  was  the  first  representative  of  the  noble 
house  of  Tudor.1  His  reign  was  signalized  by  tbe  appearance 
of  two  remarkable  impostors,  namely,  Lambert  Simnel  and 

1  Henry  VTI.  was  the  son  of  Margaret,  great  granddaughter  of  John  of 
Gaunt,  and  of  Edmund  Tudor.  He  married  Elizabeth,  daughter  of  Edward 
IV..  ami  in  this  way  tho  houses  of  York  and  Lancaster  were  united. 


ENGLISH    HISTORY.  47 

Perkin  Warbeck.  Lambert  Simnel  was  the  son  of  a  baker,  and 
(being  trained  purposely  for  the  character)  was  placed  at  the 
head  of  an  insurrection  at  Nottingham,  and  proclaimed  to  be 
the  son  of  the  late  Duke  of  Clarence,  and  heir  to  the  throne. 
A  sanguinary  battle  took  place  (A.  D.  1487)  between  the 
rebels  and  the  king's  army,  in  which  the  former  were  dis- 
persed, and  the  pretender  taken  prisoner.  He  was  pardoned 
by  Henry,  and  afterwards  filled  the  situation  of  scullion  in 
the  royal  kitchen.  Perkin  Warbeck's  appearance  and  educa- 
tion were  more  favorable  to  deception.  He  was  reported  to 
be  the  little  Duke  of  York  who  was  murdered  with  his 
brother  in  the  Tower.  King  James  IV.  of  Scotland  became 
one  of  his  supporters ;  his  standard  was  joined  by  many  of 
the  highest  noblemen  in  the  kingdom ;  he  assumed  the  title 
of  Richard  IH.  of  England,  and  even  obtained  the  hand  of 
the  Lady  Gordon  in  marriage.  He  was,  however,  taken 
prisoner,  (A.  D.  1499,)  thrown  into  the  Tower,  and  executed 
publicly. 

H.  Notwithstanding  these  rebellions,  Henry  VTL  was  a 
prudent,  wis^,  and  merciful  sovereign.  He  tried  to  reform 
abuses  in  the  church,  extended  the  privileges  of  the  peo- 
ple, promoted  trade  and  commerce  with  other  nations,  and 
rendered  Englishmen  powerful  and  happy.  During  his 
reign,  Columbus,  under  the  patronage  of  Isabella,  Queen  of 
Spain,  made  the  discovery  of  America,  (A.  D.  1492.)  John 
and  Sebastian  Cabot  also  discovered  Newfoundland  in  1497, 
and  afterwards  a  considerable  portion  of  North  America.1 

1  During  the  reign  of  Henry  Til.,  and  the  half  century  preceding1  it,  the 
great  movement  of  the  age  was  in  maritime  discovery.  Columbus  offered 
his  services  to  Portugal,  but  they  were  rejected;  he  then  made  applicat  n, 
through  his  brother  Bartholomew,  to  Henry  VII.,  of  England,  for  aid; 
but  Bartholomew  was  so  long  upon  his  journey,  that  he  did  not  return  to 
Spain  until  Columbus  had  returned  from  his  first  voyage,  (A.  D.  1493.) 
Henry  VIT..  P:\U-P r  to  profit  by  the  discovery  which  Columbus  had  nunlr, 
nuthoriml  .John  Cabot,  a  Veiu-tiau,  then  belonging  to  Bristol,  and  his  son 
Sebastian,  to  start  an  expedition  at  their  own  expense,  in  order  to  do  what 
they  could  for  themselves,  and,  at  the  same  time,  to  set  up  the  banners  of 


48  OUUTLINES    OF 

Sebastian  Cabot  published  the  first  map  of  the  world  which 
included  both  hemispheres.  Vasco  di  Gama,  a  Portuguese, 
first  doubled  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope,  and  made  the  passage 
to  India  by  sea  in  1497. l  Maps  and  sea  charts  were  now 
brought  to  England ;  shillings  were  coined ;  the  yeomen  of 
the  guard  were  appointed  for  the  safety  and  honor  of  the 
king's  person ;  the  arbitrary  court  of  law  known  as  the  Star 
Chamber,2  was  first  established ;  and  Henry  VTL's  chapel  was 
built  at  Westminster  Abbey  —  a  work  considered  to  be  the 
most  perfect  specimen  of  Tudor  architecture  now  extant. 
Henry  VH.  died  in  1509,  having  lived  fifty-two  years,  and 
reigned  twenty-three.  He  was  succeeded  by  his  son  Henry 

vm. 

HENRY  VIII. 

BEGAN  TO  REIGN  A.  D.    1509.      DIED   1547. 

HI.  HENRY  VIII.,  young,  affable,  handsome,  and  popular, 
ascended  the  English  throne  at  eighteen  years  of  age.  Dur- 
ing the  first  year  of  his  reign,  he  married  with  Catharine  of 
Arragon,  and  threatened  an  invasion  of  France,  which,  how- 
ever, came  to  nothing.  Soon  after  this,  he  became  the  firm 
friend  of  Thomas  Wolsey,  then  dean  of  Lincoln,  a  man  of 
great  ambition  and  talent,  who  had  risen  from  the  middle 
rank  of  life,  and  who  was  afterwards  promoted  to  the  high 
dignity  of  a  cardinalship.  "When  the  king  had  been  married 
eighteen  years,  he  fell  in  love  with  Anna  Boleyn,  one  of  the 
maids  of  honor  attending  upon  the  queen.  In  order  to  effect 
a  marriage  with  her,  he  divorced  Queen  Catharine  in  1532, 
who  died  of  grief  shortly  after,  and  he  even  defied  Pope 

the  English  monarch,  as  his  vassals  and  deputies.  The  discovery  made  by 
the  Cabots  was  the  foundation  of  the  claim  of  the  English  to  their  posses- 
eions  in  North  America, 

1  Previous  to  this  time,  the  merchandise  of  India  was  conveyed  to  Eu- 
rope by  way  of  the  Red  Sea,  thence  over  land  V>  the  Mediterranean. 

2  The  Star  Chamber  was  an  arbitrary  court  of  law.,  in  which  the  king 
used  to  attend  iti  ; rrs->u  as  judge.     It  was  called  the  (Star  Chamber  from  the 
name  of  the  room  in  which  the  court  held  its  sittings. 


ENGLISH   HISTORY.  49 

Clement  VII.  for  refusing  to  sanction  his  proceedings.     This 
step  led  to  the  REFORMATION.1 

IV.  Having  declared  open  opposition  to  the  church  of 
Rome,  Henry  proceeded  to  make  the  most  cruel  enactments 
against  Papists ;  to  demolish  the  monasteries  and  convents 
scattered  by  hundreds  throughout  his  dominions ;  to  turn  the 
religious  communities  abroad  into  the  world ;  and  to  pour 
into  his  own  treasuries  the  wealth  which  had  been  accumu- 
lating in  the  clerical  coffers  for  a  thousand  years.     Dreadful 
persecutions  ensued;    men  were   hanged,  burned,  and  be- 
headed, for  not  believing  as  he  desired ;  and  brave  old  Sir 
Thomas  More  and  Bishop  Fisher  were  executed  (A.  D.  1535) 
for  denying  his  royal  supremacy.     Even  Cardinal  Wolsey 
was  degraded,  and  arrested  for  high  treason,  but  died  before 
any  further  steps  could  be  taken  against  him,  having  ex- 
claimed, in  the  pangs  of  remorse,  "  Had  I  but  served  God  as 
diligently  as  I  have  served  the  king,  he  would  not  have  given 
me  over  in  my  gray  hairs." 

V.  Henry's  next  step  was  to  behead  Anna  Boleyn,  and 
marry  the  Lady  Jane  Seymour,  (A.  D.  1536,)  who  died  in 
giving  birth  to  a  son.     He  then  entered  into  an  alliance  with 
the  Princess  Ann  of  Cleves,  to  whom,  however,  he  took  an 
intense  aversion ;  and,  having  put  her  aside,  married  Cath- 
arine Howard,  niece  to  the  Duke  of  Norfolk.     This  lady  he 
beheaded  in  1542,  and  then  gave  his  hand,  for  the  last  time," 
to  Lady  Catharine  Parr,  widow  of  the  late  Lord  Latimer. 
This  wife  alone  contrived  to  retain  the  tyrant's  affection,  and, 
not  being  either  divorced  or  beheaded,  had  the  happiness  to 
survive  him. 

VI.  The  last  victims  to  the  caprices  of  this  cruel  monarch 
were  the  Duke  of  Norfolk,  and  his  son,  the  Earl  of  Surrey, 
a  young  man  who  excelled  in  all  the  accomplishments  of  a 

1  Before  Henry  had  arrived  at  the  age  of  thirty,  he  had  written  a  book 
against  Luther,  the  reformer,  which  i>U-nsed  the  pope  so  much  that  he  con- 
ferred on  him  the  title  of  "  Defender  of  the  Faith,"  a  title  which  hia  succes- 
sors have  ever  since  retained. 


50  OUTLINES    OF 

scholar,  a  soldier,  and  a  courtier,  and  who  ranks  among  the 
early  English  poets.  Both  were  accused  of  high  treason. 
Surrey's  head  fell  upon  Tower  Hill,  (A.  D.  1547 ;)  but  the 
life  of  his  father  was  providentially  saved  by  the  death  of  the 
king,  which  happened  on  the  evening  of  the  day  before  that 
appointed  for  his  execution. 

No  king  ever  violated  the  rights  of  Englishmen,  or  the 
fundamental  liberties  specified  in  Magna  Charta,  more  fla- 
grantly than  King  Henry  VIII.  Upon  life  he  placed  no 
value,  and  for  law  he  entertained  no  reverence.  He  even  ex- 
acted a  bill  from  his  slavish  Parliament  by  which  the  written 
edict  of  the  sovereign  was  elevated  to  the  level  of  a  legal 
statute  —  a  measure  which  rendered  the  crown  absolutely 
despotic,  and  vested  in  the  hands  of  the  king  the  honor, 
safety,  and  wealth  of  the  entire  nation.  During  this  reign, 
many  important  discoveries  were  made,  literature  much  ad- 
vanced, and  considerable  progress  effected  in  general  knowl- 
edge. St.  Paul's  school  was  founded  in  1510 ;  the  College 
of  Physicians  established  in  1518;  Whitehall  and  St.  James's 
Palace  were  built;  Mexico  was  conquered  by  Cortez,  and 
Peru  by  Pizarro;  Wolsey  commenced  building  Hampton 
Court  Palace,  and  Christchurch,  Oxford;  ship  building  was 
improved,  and  the  navy  extended;  the  corporation  of  the 
Trinity  House  was  instituted ;  the  office  of  secretary  of  state 
was  created  by  government;  the  society  of  Jesuits  was 
founded  by  Ignatius  Loyola,  (A.  D.  1540 ;)  Wales  was  for 
the  first  time  represented  in  Parliament ;  classical  literature 
was  extensively  cultivated  among  the  higher  classes  of  both 
sexes  ;  and  Erasmus,  a  learned  native  of  Holland,  was  elected 
professor  of  Greek  at  the  University  of  Oxford,  and  contrib- 
uted much  by  his  presence  and  attainments  towards  the  ad- 
vancement of  education  in  England.  The  College  of  Physi- 
cians was  founded,  and  medicine  and  surgery  made  extraordi- 
nary advances.  The  whole  of  the  Bible  was  translated  into 
English  in  1539  the  church  Prayer  Book  and  the  Articles  of 
Religion  were  arranged  by  Bishop  Cranmer,  in  1540;  cher- 


ENGLISH   HISTORY.  51 

ries,  hops,  apricots,  pippins,  and  various  other  kinds  of  fruit 
and  vegetables  were  first  cultivated  in  England ;  cotton  thread 
was  invented ;  leaden  conduits,  for  the  conveyance  of  water, 
were  substituted  for  the  wooden  ones  which  had  previously 
been  in  use;  pins  were  introduced  from  France  by  Queen 
Catharine  Howard,  and  were  then  a  very  expensive  luxury. 
Before  this  time,  ribbons,  loopholes,  laces  with  tags,  hooks 
and  eyes,  and  skewers  of  brass,  silver,  and  gold,  had  been 
used  alike  by  men  and  women.  The  term  "  pin  money,"  as 
applied  to  the  income  allowed  by  husband  to  wife,  is  dated 
back  to  this  period,  and  refers  to  the  heavy  expenses  incurred 
by  the  purchase  of  this  extravagant  article  of  attire.  Much 
of  the  interchange  of  the  country  was  transacted  at  fares 
and  markets;  and  provisions  were  so  cheap,  that  beef  and 
mutton  were  purchased  at  the  rate  of  one  halfpenny  per 
pound.  The  value  of  precious  metals,  however,  was  very 
low,  and  a  pound,  at  the  time  of  the  conquest,  would  buy 
twelve  times  as  much  as  at  the  present  day. 

EDWARD  VI. 

BEGAN  TO  REIGN  A,   D.    1547,      DIED   1553. 

VII.  King  EDWARD  VI.,  son  of  Henry  VIII.*  by  Jane 
Seymour,  ascended  the  throne  in  1547,  being  then  nine 
years  of  age.  The  Duke  of  Somerset  was  appointed  pro- 
tector till  the  king  should  attain  his  majority.  He  was,  how- 
ever, supplanted  and  executed  by  the  bold  and  ambitious 
Duke  of  Northumberland,  who  persuaded  Edward  to  transfer 
the  succession  to  his  cousin  Lady  Jane  Grey,  instead  of  suf- 
fering it  to  devolve,  as  it  should,  upon  his  eldest  sister,  Mary. 
Lady  Jane  Grey  was  the  wife  of  Northumberland's  son,  Lord 
Guildford  Dudley.  Shortly  after  this  decision,  the  king's 
health  declined ;  and  when  he  died  of  consumption  in  1553, 
in  the  sixteenth  year  of  his  age,  there  were  not  wanting 
tongues  among  the  people  to  attribute  his  loss  to  the  machi- 
nations of  the  protector.  He  was  amiable,  highly  accom- 
plished, and  dearly  loved  by  his  subjects. 


52  OUTLINES    OF 

No  religious  persecution  was  suffered  during  his  reign,  and 
a  law  was  passed  by  which  Protestant  clergymen  were  per- 
mitted to  marry.  The  book  of  Psalms  was  also  translated 
into  verse,  by  Sternhold  and  Hopkins  ;  the  book  of  Homi- 
lies was  compiled  by  Cranmer  and  Ridley  ;  and  a  new  code 
of  Articles  was  drawn  up,  to  the  number  of  forty-two,  from 
which  the  Thirty-nine  Articles  of  the  established  church  now 
in  use  were  afterwards  compiled.  Christ's  Hospital  and  St. 
Thomas's  Hospital  were  founded,  as  well  as  many  other 
charitable  institutions,  grammar  schools,  alms  houses,  £c., 
throughout  all  parts  of  the  kingdom.  Grapes  were  brought 
over  from  France,  and  cultivated  in  England  for  the  first 
time;  crowns,  half  crowns,  and  sixpences  were  introduced 
into  the  currency  ;  and  a  dreadful  plague,  called  the  sweating 
sickness,  which  had  hitherto  been  prevalent  from  time  to 
time,  became  totally  extinct.  Trade  with  Russia  was  for  the 
first  time  opened  during  the  reign  of  King  Edward  VL 

MARY  L 

BEGAN  TO  EEIGN  A.  D.    1553.      DIED   1558. 


Vin.  ^JARY  L,  eldest  daughter  of  King  Henry  VHI.  by 
Catharine  of  Arragon,  next  received  the  crown,  after  a  brief 
contest  of  only  ten  days  with  Lady  Jane  Grey  and  her  sup- 
porters. She  inaugurated  her  cruel  reign  with  the  death  of 
the  unfortunate  young  pair,  Dudley  and  Lady  Jane  Grey. 
Her  next  step  was  to  marry  Philip  II.  of  Spain,  A.  D.  1554, 
who  cared  little  for  her  affection,  and  left  her,  as  soon  as  pos- 
sible, for  his  native  country. 

IX.  The  most  tremendous  and  fearful  persecutions  were 
now  directed  against  the  reformers.  The  Bishops  of  London, 
Woreester,  and  Gloucester,  and  even  Archbishop  Cranmer, 
were  condemned  to  the  flames  ;  and  it  is  computed  that  dur- 
ing this  reign  of  terror,  which  lasted  between  four  and  five 
years,  no  less  than  two  hundred  and  seventy-seven  human 
beings  were  frightfully  sacrificed.  Mary  died  in  I«3o8,  uni- 
versally abhorred. 


ENGLISH   HISTORY.  53 

Coaches  were  introduced  in  this  reign,  before  which  time 
ladies  used  to  be  carried  in  litters,  or  rode  on  pillions  behind 
their  mounted  squires.  Flax  and  hemp  were  first  cultivated, 
the  use  of  starch  was  discovered,  and  the  manufacture  of 
drinking  glasses  began  to  be  encouraged  in  England. 

ELIZABETH. 
BEGAN  TO  REIGN  A.  D.  1558.    DIED  1603. 

X.  ELIZABETH,  a  Protestant  princess,  and  daughter  of 
King  Henry  VIII.  and  Queen  Anna  Boleyn,  succeeded  to  the 
throne.  Had  she  relieved  the  whole  nation  from  captivity 
and  chains,  the  delirium  of  joy  with  which  all  classes  hailed 
the  accession  of  Queen  Elizabeth  could  scarcely  have  been 
greater.  The  first  act  sanctioned  by  her  authority  was  the 
formal  restoration  of  the  Protestant  religion ;  and  in  a  single 
session  of  Parliament  the  articles  of  faith  were  established, 
freedom  of  thought  secured,  the  acts  of  her  sister  abolished, 
and  Protestantism  forever  constituted  the  religion  of  England. 

XL  In  the  year  1587,  Elizabeth  tarnished  the  glory  of 
her  reign  by  signing  the  death  warrant  of  Mary  Queen  of 
Scots,  who  had  fallen  into  her  power,  and  was  imprisoned  for 
many  years  in  Fotheringay  Castle.1  The  obloquy  of  this  deed 
was  effaced  shortly  after  from  the  minds  of  the  people  by  the 
glorious  defeat  of  the  "  Invincible  Armada  "  sent  out  against 
England  by  Philip  II.  of  Spain,  under  the  command  of  the  Duke 
de  Medina  Sidonia,  This  fleet  consisted  of  one  hundred  and 
thirty-six  ships,  with  nearly  nine  thousand  mariners  and 
twenty-two  thousand  soldiers.  The  whole  number  of  the 
queen's  ships,  large  and  small,  was  one  hundred  and  ninety- 

1  Mary  Stuart,  Queen  of  Scots,  was  the  daughter  of  Mary  of  Guise,  Queen 
Regent  of  Scotland,  and  granddaughter  of  Ileiiry  VII.,  and  was  the  next 
heir  to  Elizabeth  to  the  throne  of  England.  She  was  educated  in  France 
as  a  Catholic,  and  married  when  quite  young  to  the  dauphin,  who  afterwards 
lieeame  Francis  II.,  King  of  France.  They  then  assumed  the  title  of  King 
and  Queen  of  Kntrlaml. 

On  the  death  of  Frames,  Mary,  at  the  age  of  eighteen  years,  returned  to 
Scotland,  to  reign  for  that  country  as  queen.  At  this  time  the  reformed 

5 


54-  OUTLINES    OF 

Beven^  containing  nearly  sixteen  thousand  sailors,  or  fighting 
men,  commanded  by  Admirals  Howard,  Drake,  Hawkins  and 
Frobisher,  (A.  IX  1588.)  Just  as  the  Channel  was  covered  by 
the  hostile  sail,  a  tremendous  storm  came  on.  The  Spanish  fleet 
got  into  disorder.  The  English  navy  rushed  upon  them,  and 
poured  in  their  batteries  from  every  side.  Two  great  three 
deckers  were  taken,  and  twelve  smaller  ones ;  flight,  destruc- 
tion, or  submission  alone  was  left  to  the  rest,  and  of  all  that 
mighty  armament  commissioned  to  subdue  Old  England,  only  a 
miserable  remnant  escaped  to  carry  back  the  tidings  of  defeat. 

XII.  The  career  of  this  famous  queen  presents  other 
glories,  very  different,  but  equally  splendid.  During  her 
reign  the  poets  Spenser  and  Raleigh  wrote  and  flourished ; 
Lord  Bacon,  the  philosopher  and  historian,  lived ;  and  Shak- 
speare,  the  immortal  poet  and  dramatist,  whose  works  are  the 
glory  of  English  literature,  wrote  some  of  his  finest  plays, 
surviving  the  queen  by  thirteen  years. 

XHI.  The  act  of  supremacy,  passed  at  the  commence- 
ment of  Elizabeth's  reign,  was  the  greatest  mistake  of  this 
sovereign's  career.  Devised  for  the  purpose  of  crushing  the 
Roman  Catholic  influence,  this  act  compelled  all  clergymen, 
and  persons  holding  office  under  the  crown,  to  take  an  oath 

religion,  under  John  Knox,  had  made  great  progress  in  Scotland,  and  the 
people  were  therefore  greatly  opposed  to  Mary.  She  married  for  her  second 
husband  her  cousin  Henry  Stuart,  (Lord  Darnley,)  but  soon  grew  tired  of 
him.  Mary  gave  birth  to  a  son,  who  afterwards  became  James  VI.  of  Scot- 
land and  James  I.  of  England.  In  less  than  two  years  Darnley  was  mur- 
dered, and  Mary  soon  after  married  the  Earl  of  Both  well,  who  was  suspected 
of  being  the  murderer. 

Such  guilty  unions  seldom  prosper ;  they  had  lived  together  hut  a  few 
weeks,  when  the  nobles  rose  against  both  her  and  her  husband  for  the  pro- 
tection of  the  young  prince.  Bothwell  fled  abroad,  and  soon  died,  while 
Mary  was  taken  a  prisoner,  and  confined  in  the  Castle  of  Lochleven.  She 
was  compelled  to  resign  the  crown  to  her  infant  eon.  who  was  proclaimed 
James  VI.,  and  the  Earl  of  Murray  was  appointed  regent. 

In  less  than  a  year  Mary  escaped  from  her  prison,  and  fled  to  England,  to 
ask  the  assistance  of  Elizabeth ;  but  she  did  not  obtain  it.  After  being 
kept  a  prisoner  in  Fotheringay  Castle  for  more  than  eighteen  years,  she 
was  accused  of  being  an  accessor}'  to  a  conspiracy  against  Elizabeth,  tried, 
•ondemned,  and  beheaded,  in  the  forty-fifth  year  of  her  age. 


ENGLISH   HISTORY.  55 

abjuring  not  only  the  temporal,  but  even  the  spiritual  author- 
ity of  every  foreign  prince  or  prekte,  and  acknowledging  the 
sovereign  as  the  head  of  the  church,  with  rights  derived  from 
God.  This  act  was  followed  by  the  act  of  conformity, 
which  prohibited  all  persons  from  attending  the  ministrations 
of  any  clergyman  not  belonging  to  the  established  church. 
The  lamentable  consequences  may  be  readily  imagined: 
hundreds  suffered  death,  imprisonment,  and  persecution,  in 
this  and  following  reigns,  through  the  operation  of  these 
arbitrary  statutes. 

XIV.  The  naval  power  of  England,  which  had  been 
gradually  extending  ever  since  the  time  of  Henry  V.,  con- 
tinued still  to  be  the  chief  care  and  ambition  of  the  gov- 
ernment. Noble  and  scientific  men  pressed  eagerly  forward 
to  join  in  expeditions  for  the  discovery  of  unknown  countries. 
Sir  Francis  Drake  made  a  three  years'  voyage  round  the 
world,  and  was  the  first  Englishman  who  accomplished  the 
circumnavigation  of  the  globe.  He  brought  potatoes  from 
North  America,  and  planted  them  in  Lancashire.  Tobacco 
was  first  brought  to  this  country  by  Sir  John  Hawkins, 
(A.  D.  1565.)  Tea  was  introduced  by  the  Dutch.  Pocket 
watches  were  brought  over  from  Nuremberg,  in  Germany. 
Silk  stockings  were  worn  for  the  first  time  by  the  queen, 
cloth  hose  having  previously  been  in  use.  The  art  of 
paper  making  from  linen  rags  was  begun  at  Dartford,  by  Sir 
John  Speilman,  a  German,  (A.  D.  1590.)  Telescopes  were 
invented  by  one  Jansen,  a  spectacle  maker  at  Middleburgh, 
in  Holland.  Decimal  arithmetic  was  discovered  by  Simon 
Stevin,  a  scholar  of  Bruges.  The  Italian  method  of  book- 
keeping was  taught  in  England  by  James  Peele,  whose  book  on 
the  subject  is  yet  extant.  Knives  were  first  made  in  England 
A.  D.  1563,  and  were  the  earliest  branch  of  domestic  cutlery, 
being  manufactured  by  one  Matthews,  of  Fleet  Bridge,  Lon- 
don. The  age  of  Elizabeth  was  distinguished  for  its  intel- 
lectual freedom,  and  may  pre-eminently  claim  the  distinction 
of  having  called  up  a  great  native  literature.  In  1556,  the 


i>t>  OUTLINES    OF 

Royal  Exchange  was  built  by  Sir  Thomas  Gresham.  In 
1590,  "Westminster  School  was  founded  by  the  queen;  and 
Rugby  School  was  founded  by  L.  Sheriffe.  Mercantile 
transactions  were  now  carried  on  upon  a  more  liberal  and 
extensive  scale;  the  whale  and  cod  fisheries  were  estab- 
lished ;  Birmingham  and  Sheffield  became  the  centre  of 
hardware  manufactures,  and  Manchester  of  cotton  and 
stocking  weaving;  theatrical  representations  became  the 
popular  amusements  of  the  people;  art  was  encouraged 
by  the  nobility,  and  Shakspeare  and  Spenser  wrote  their 
immortal  poetry.  In  the  fifth  year  of  Elizabeth's  reign,  the 
poor  laws  were  enacted,  and  the  population  of  London 
averaged  one  hundred  and  sixty  thousand  souls.  The 
Bodleian  Library  was  formed  at  this  time,  the  East  India 
Company  organized,  and  attempts  were  made  to  colonize 
North  America.1 

XV.  In  1603  Queen  Elizabeth  died,  much  beloved  by 
the  English  people,  and  to  this  day  revered  as  the  restorer 
of  peace,  the  patroness  of  learning,  the  protectress  of  religious 
liberty,  and  the  upholder  of  the  great  English  name  through 
all  the  kingdoms  of  Europe.  With  her  terminated  the  house 
of  Tudor. 

QUESTIONS  TO  CHAPTER  V. 

I.  What  remarkable  impos-  reign  ?    Name  the  other  discov- 
tures     signalized    this    reign?  eries  of  great  navigators.    What 
Relate    the    story   of   Lambert  signal  improvements  and  invon- 
Simnel.      Relate   the   story  of  tions  took   place  at  this  time  ? 
Perkin  Warbeck.  What  building  is  considered  the 

II.  What  was  the  character  most    perfect    specimen    of   its 
of  Henry  VII.  ?    In  what  way  order  now  extant  ?     When  did 
did  he  contribute  to  the  happi-  he  die,  and  at  what  age  ?     By 
ness  of  his  people  ?    What  great  whom  was  he  succeeded  ? 
discovery  was  made  during  his  III.   What  was  the  character 

1  During  the  reigns  of  Henry  VIII.,  Edward  VI,  and  Mary,  England  had 
been  so  much  distracted  by  internal  dissensions,  that  no  efforts  were  made  to 
avail  themselves  by  colonization  of  the  discoveries  made  in  North  America 
by  Cabot.  Soou  after  the  accession  of  Elizabeth,  however,  public  attention 


ENGLISH   HISTOIiT. 


57 


of  Henry  VIII.  at  eighteen 
years  of  age  ?  What  events 
took  place  in  the  first  year  of 
his  reign  ?  Who  was  Thomas 
Wolsey  ?  What  led  to  the  royal 
divorce  ?  What  great  religious 
movement  did  this  circumstance 
lead  to  ? 

IV.  What    were   the   enact- 
ments of  Henry  VIII.  regarding 
Papists  ?     What  was  the  nature 
of    the    church    persecutions  ? 
What  great  men  were  degraded 
and  punished  in  consequence  ? 

V.  What  was  Henry's  next 
matrimonial    step  ?     Name  his 
third,   fourth,    fifth,   and    sixth 
wives.     Why  was  the  last  the 
most  fortunate  ? 

VI.  Who  were  the  last  vic- 
tims of  King  Henry's  capricgs  ? 
What  was  the  fate  of  Surrey, 
and  what  was  his   reputation  ? 
How  was  the  life  of  the  Duke 
of   Norfolk   spared?     In  what 
way  did  Henry  VIII.  render  his 
power   despotic  ?     What  great 
buildings  were  erected  at  this 


time,  and  what  important  ad- 
vances made  in  literature  and 
general  knowledge  ?  What  fruits 
were  introduced,  and  what  im- 
provements effected  in  the  me- 
tropolis ?  Relate  the  history  of 
pins. 

VII.  In  what  year  did  Ed- 
ward VI.  succeed  to  the  crown, 
and  what  was  his  age  ?     Who 
was    appointed    protector,    and 
what  was   his   fate  ?     To   what 
act  was  the  king  influenced  by 
the  Duke  of  Northumberland  ? 
Who   was     Lady   Jane    Grey  ? 
When  did  the  king's  health  first 
begin  to  decline,  and  what  was 
the  popular  opinion  respecting 
the  manner  of  his  death  ?   When 
did  Edward  VI.  die,  and  at  what 
age  ?     What  important  law  was 
passed     respecting     Protestant 
clergymen  ?      What     religions 
works   were   compiled?      What 
benevolent      institutions      were 
founded  ?      What     branch    of 
trade  was  opened  abroad  ? 

VIII.  For  how  long  did  Lady 


was  directed  to  this  subject ;  and  early  in  1579  Sir  Humphrey  Gilbert,  a 
brother-in-law  of  Sir  Walter  Raleigh,  having  obtained  a  patent,  made  two 
unsuccessful  voyages,  in  the  last  of  which  his  vessel  was  shipwrecked,  and 
all  on  board  perished.  Not  discouraged  by  the  unfortunate  issue  of  the 
enterprises  of  Gilbert,  Raleigh  obtained  a  new  patent  from  Elizabeth,  (A,  D. 
1584,)  and  despatched  two  small  vessels  to  the  American  coast,  under  the 
command  of  Amidas  and  Barlow.  On  their  return  to  England  they  gave 
so  splendid  a  description  of  the  beauty  and  fertility  of  the  country,  that 
Eli/abeth  bestowed  upon  it  the  name  of  Virginia,  as  a  memorial  that  tha 
discovery  had  been  made  under  a  virgin  queen. 

The  report  brought  back  by  them  induced  Sir  Walter,  in  1585.  to  attempt 
to  form  a  settlement  at  Roanoke  Island.  This  colony  was  reduced  to  great 
distress,  and  in  1586  returned  with  Sir  Francis  Drake  to  England.  The 
following  year,  however,  another  colony  was  sent  out,  consisting  of  one 
hundred  and  fifty  adventurers ;  but  they  were  neglected  in  respect  to  sup- 
plies, and  when,  at  length,  a  vessel  was  sent  to  inquire  into  their  state,  not 
a  vestige  of  them  remained. 

In  1602,  Bartholomew  Gosnold  made  a  voyage  to  New  England,  and 
visited  Cape  Cod,  Nantncket,  Martha's  Vineyard,  and  the  Elizabeth  Islands. 
Upon  one  of  the  latter  he  attempted  to  form  a  settlement,  but  without 
success. 

JMP 


58 


OUTLINES    OF 


Jane  Grey  contest  the  crown, 
and  what  was  her  fate  and  that 
of  her  husband  ?  Who  was 
Mary  I.  ?  With  whom  did  she 
marry  ? 

IX.  Relate  the  persecutions 
levelled   at  the   Protestants  in 
this  reign.      How  many   souls 
perished  by  fire  ?      When  did 
Mary   die,    and   how  was    she 
liked  by  the  people  ?   Relate  the 
social     improvements     effected 
during  this  reign  ? 

X.  What  reception  did  Eliza- 
beth meet  with  ?    What  was  the 
first  act  of  her  reign  ? 

XI.  What  was  the  end   of 
Mary,  Queen  of  Scots,  and  when 
was  she  executed  ?    What  great 
victory  effaced  the  memory  of 
this  deed  ?    What  was  the  com- 
parative sea  strength  of  Spain 
and  England  ?    What  was  the 
result  of  the  expedition  ? 

XII.  What  great  men  flour- 
ished   in  the   reign  of   Queen 
Elizabeth  ?    What  valuable  in- 
strument was  invented  ?     What 
influential  company  received  its 
charter  ?     How  many  years  did 
Shakespeare  survive  Queen  Eliz- 
abeth ? 

XIII.  For  what  purpose  was 
the  act  of  supremacy  devised, 
and    of  what    nature   was    it  ? 
Relate  the  results  of  its  opera- 
tion. 

XIV.  What    progress    was 


made  by  England  as  a  naval 
power,  and  in  what  way  did  men 
of  education  evince  their  eager- 
ness to  advance  knowledge  ? 
Who  was  the  first  Englishman 
that  circumnavigated  the  globe  ? 
What  vegetables  were  intro- 
duced in  this  reign,  and  by 
whom?  Who  first  carried  to- 
bacco to  England  ?  Relate  the 
inventions  which  took  place  at 
this  time  with  regard  to  dress, 
paper,  telescopes,  and  watches  ? 
Who  invented  decimal  arith- 
metic ?  When  were  knives  first 
made  in  England  ?  What  is 
said  aoout  intellectual  free- 
dom ?  What  great  public  in- 
stitutions were  founded  in  this 
reign  ?  What  great  fisheries 
were  established?  What  par- 
ticular branches  of  commerce 
were  connected  with  Birming- 
ham, Sheffield,  and  Manchester? 
When  were  the  first  poor  laws 
enacted  ?  What  great  library 
was  formed  at  this  time,  and 
what  powerful  trading  com- 
pany organized  ?  What  colony 
was  first  inhabited  during  this 
reign  ? 

XV.  In  what  year  did  this 
great  queen  die  ?  In  what  way 
did  she  contribute  to  the  pros- 
perity of  her  kingdom  ?  What 
great  royal  house  terminated  at 
her  death  ? 


ENGLISH    HISTORY.  59 


CHAPTER    VI. 

THE  HOUSE  OF   STUART. 

Began  to  reign.  Died. 

JAMES  I.    . A.  D.  1603 A.  D.  1625. 

CHARLES  L 1625 1649. 

JAMES  I. 

BEGAN  TO  REIGN  A.  D.    1603.      DIED  1625. 

I.  KING  JAMES  I.  was  the  son  of  the  unfortunate  Mary, 
Queen  of  Scots,  and,  when  the  sceptre  of  Elizabeth  descended 
to  his  hands,  was  reigning  at  Holyrood,  under  the  title  of 
King  James  VI.  of  Scotland.     At  the  veiy  commencement 
of  his  reign,  a  conspiracy  which  has  never  been  sufficiently 
cleared  up  was  set  on  foot  by  the  Lords  Grey  and  Cobham, 
and  Sir  Walter  Raleigh.     The  two  former  were  pardoned; 
but  Raleigh,  the  chivalrous  poet,  was  executed  in  1618,  after 
many  years  of  confinement. 

II.  Two  years  after  the  accession  of  James  I.,  (A.  D.  1605,) 
discovery  was  made  of  the  famous  Gunpowder  Plot,1  a  con- 
spiracy which  terrified  the  whole  nation,  was  designed  to 
reestablish  the  Roman  Catholic  religion,  and  would,  if  suc- 
cessful, have  proved  the  destruction  of  the  King,  Lords,  and 
Commons  of  the  realm.     Many  of  the  traitors  associated  in 
the  enterprise  were  publicly  executed ;  some  died  sword  in 
hand  ;  and  some  received  the  royal  pardon. 

Lord  Cecil,  the  minister  of  Queen  Elizabeth,  filled  the 
same  office  under  James  up  to  the  period  of  his  death,  in 

1  The  Gunpowder  Plot  was  projected  by  Robert  Catesby.  His  object  was 
to  blow  up  the  King,  Lords,  and  Commons  with  a  mine  of  gunpowder,  when 
they  should  be  assembled  at  the  opening  of  Parliament.  Gathering  around 
him  a  desperate  band  of  conspirators,  they  hired  a  cellar  directly  under  tho 
Ilouse  of  Lords,  put  thirty-six  barrels  of  gunpowder  in  it,  and  covered 
them  over  with  coals  and  fagots.  Just  on  the  eve  of  its  accomplishment, 
the  plot  was  discovered,  and  Guy  Fawkes.  one  of  the  conspirators,  was  taken 
with  the  matches  for  firing  the  magazine  in  his  pocket. 


60  OUTLINES    OF 

1612;  but  from  that  time  the  king  and  his  Parliament  were 
constantly  at  variance.  He  would  fain  have  extended  his 
royal  prerogative  to  a  point  little  short  of  despotism,  and 
they  were  equally  resolute  to  uphold  their  privileges  and 
power.  In  1614,  Parliament  withheld  the  supplies,  because 
James  delayed  to  redress  the  grievances  of  which  they  com- 
plained ;  and  thus  commenced  the  difficulties  which  proved 
so  fatal  to  Charles  I.  In  this  reign  (for  the  purpose  of 
raising  money)  the  king  created  the  title  of  baronet,  and 
sold  it  for  the  sum  of  £1000.  Horse  races  were  established 
at  Newmarket.  The  circulation  of  the  blood  was  discovered 
by  Dr.  Harvey,  A.  D.  1619.  The  broad  silk  manufacture 
was  introduced.  Copper  half  pence  and  farthings  were  coined 
for  the  first  time.  Logarithms  were  introduced  by  Napier, 
A.  D.  1614.  Buildings  were  built  of  brick ;  the  authorized 
translation  of  the  Bible,  as  at  present  in  use,  was  produced 
under  the  care  of  forty-seven  divines  ;  the  London  New  River 
Company  was  projected  by  Sir  Hugh  Middleton  ;  Homer  was 
translated  by  Chapman ;  and  the  Charterhouse  School  was 
founded  by  Mr.  T.  Sutton,  who  purchased  the  vast  premises 
from  the  Duke  of  Norfolk,  A.  D.  1611. 

During  this  reign,  were  commenced  the  settlements  of 
Virginia  and  New  England.  The  king  granted  (A.  D.  1606) 
a  patent  of  Virginia  to  two  companies,  the  London  and  the 
Plymouth.  Under  the  auspices  of  the  former,  the  settlement 
of  Virginia  was  commenced,  (A.  D.  1607,)  which  was  the 
first  permanent  English  settlement  in  the  United  States.  In 
1620,  a  settlement  was  commenced  at  Plymouth,  in  Massa- 
chusetts, by  a  band  of  English  Puritans.  This  sect  first 
made  their  appearance  during  the  reign  of  Mary.  They 
were  strenuous  advocates  of  civil  and  religious  liberty,  and 
met  with  great  persecution,  which  induced  them  to  seek 
refuge  in  America. 

HI.  King  James  married  the  Princess  Ann  of  Denmark, 
by  whom  he  had  four  children.  Two  alone  survived  him, 


ENGLISH    HISTORY.  Gl 

namely,  Charles,  Prince  of  Wales,  and  Elizabeth,  married  to 
Frederic  V.,  elector  palatine  of  Bavaria,  an  unfortunate 
prince,  whose  dominions  were  confiscated  by  the  emperor 
Ferdinand  II.,  and  whose  posterity  afterwards  succeeded  to 
the  English  sovereignty.  James  I.  died  in  1625,  at  the  age 
of  fifty-nine. 

CHARLES  I. 

BEGAN  TO  REIGN  A.   D.    1625.      DIED    1649. 

IV.  CHARLES  I.  commenced   his    reign   with   great   ap- 
parent advantages  of  person,  education,  and  position.     He 
found  the  treasury  of  the  country,  however,  in  an  impov- 
erished   condition ;    and,   being  refused    sufficient   supplies 
by  the  Parliament,  laid  a  heavy  and  unpopular  tax  upon 
the  people,  with  the  proceeds  of  which  he  fitted  out  a  fleet 
for  the  invasion  of  Spain.     This  measure  created  great  dis- 
content ;  but  instead  of  being  warned  by  the  murmurs  of  the 
nation.  Charles  was  unjust  and  impolitic  enough  to  persevere, 
and  from   1629  to   1640  never  called  any  Parliament,  but 
raised  money  by  means  of  an  obsolete  statute  called  the  levy 
of  ship  money.     It  may  be  as  well  here  to  explain  the  nature 
of  that  tax. 

V.  Three  years  after  the  king's  accession,  (A.  D.  1628,) 
the  Commons,  in  return  for  five  subsidies,  had  induced  him 
to  sign  that  second  great  charter  of  English  liberties  known 
as  the  Petition  of  Right ;    by  which  he  bound  himself  to 
raise  no  taxes  without  the  consent  of  Parliament.     It  was 
therefore  in  direct  violation  of  his   own  treaty,  that  in   1629 
royal  writs  were  issued  to  the  city  of  London,  and  to  the 
towns  along  the  coast,  exacting  a  tribute  of  money  for  the 
purpose  of  equipping  ships  of  war  for  the  defence  of  the 
country.     At  first  this  step,  though  productive  of  much  ill 
feeling  between  the  king  and  the  people,  was  yet  tolerated, 
and  had  some  excuse  of  precedent ;  but  Charles  shortly  ven- 
tured on  a  stretch  of  prerogative  that  no  other  sovereign, 
however  arbitrary,  had  ever  dared  to  contemplate.     He  sent 


62  OUTLINES    OF 

writs  of  ship  monty  to  the  inland  counties,  where  no  ship 
had  ever  been  seen,  and  continued  to  raise  money  for  the 
defence  of  his  kingdom,  at  a  time  when  he  was  at  peace  with 
all  the  world. 

VI.  The  first  resistance  was  offered  by  John  Hampden,  a 
gentleman  of  Buckinghamshire.     He  refused  to  pay  the  rate 
levied  upon  his  estate,  and  brought  the  matter  to  trial,  (A.  D. 
1636,)  with  the  patriotic  resolution  of  supporting  the  liberties 
of  the  people.     The  result,  which  it  was  hoped  would  affix 
some  limit  to  the  power  of  the  sovereign,  was  anxiously 
awaited  by  the  nation;   but  Hampden  lost  his  cause,  and 
Charles  grew  more  exacting  than  ever.     Many  ceremonies 
of  Roman  Catholic  worship  were  now  introduced  into  the 
church ;  Episcopacy  was  forced  upon  the  Scots,  who  rebelled 
in  consequence ;  more  rates  and  levies  were  wrung  from  the 
public  purse,  and  the  king  raised  an  army,  and  marched  to 
the  north,   (A.  D.   1640,)  where,  instead  of  defeating  the 
Presbyterians,  he  ended  a  feeble  campaign  by  a  treaty  of 
peace. 

VII.  During  the  month  of  April,  in  this  year,  (1640,) 
Charles  found  himself  compelled  once  more  to  assemble  a 
Parliament ;  and  this  time  Hampden  took  his  seat  in  the 
House  of  Commons  as  member  for  Buckinghamshire,  and 
leader  of  the  opposition  party.     This  Parliament  the  king 
angrily  dissolved,  because  it  was  bent  upon  redressing  the 
public  grievances.     He  threw  some  of  the  members  of  the 
House  of  Commons  into  prison,  exacted  ship  money  more 
rigorously  than  ever,  and  even  prosecuted  the  corporation  of 
London  for  their  unwillingness  to  enforce  the  levies. 

VTIL  Again  a  Parliament  was  called,  (Nov.  1640,)  and 
again  the  opposition,  more  powerful  than  ever,  with  Hamp- 
den, Pym,  Hollis,  and  others,  at  the  head  of  the  party, 
stood  up  to  force  the  king  to  something  like  justice  and  repa- 
ration. By  this  famous  tribunal,  great  and  salutary  reforms 
were  vigorously  carried  out.  StrafFord,  who  had  been  created 
earl,  lord  lieutenant  of  Ireland,  and  president  of  the  council 


ENGLISH    HISTORY.  G3 

of  the  north,  was  impeached,  with  Archbishop  Laud,  impris- 
oned, and  executed.  The  servile  judges  and  officers  of  the 
crown  were  punished,  and  the  king  deprived  of  arbitrary  and 
feudal  powers.  In  fact,  it  was  open  war  between  Charles  and 
his  people. 

IX.  As  if  blindly  led  on  to  his  ruin,  Charles  now  com- 
mitted an  act  for  which  history  can  furnish  no  parallel,  and 
posterity  no  excuse.     Enraged  against  the  opposition,  and 
misled  by  the  lenity  with  which  some  of  the  members  were 
disposed  to  treat  his  measures,  he  went  in  person  to  the 
House  of  Commons,  (Jan.   1642,)  attended,  as  far  as  the 
door,  by  two  hundred  halberdiers  and  armed  courtiers,  there 
to  arrest  and  seize  Lord  Kimbolton,  Hampdcn,  Hollis,  Pym, 
and  two  other  members,  whom  he  had  previously  impeached 
through  his  attorney  general.     Any  thing  so  unprecedented 
as  the  arrest  of  members  engaged  in  the  exercise  of  their 
parliamentary  duties  had  never  been  known ;  and  though  the 
attempt  failed,  and  the  members  were  absent,  this  act  of  tyr- 
anny led  to  extremes  which  few  then  could  have  anticipated. 

X.  Hampden  and  his  friends  secreted  themselves  in  the 
city.     The  Parliament  recalled  them,  and  they  returned  to 
then*  seats  in  triumph,  accompanied  by  immense  crowds  of 
spectators  and  military,  and  saluted  with  salvos  of  artillery. 
The  result  was  civil  war.     Charles  fled  to  the  north,  after 
having  sent  the  queen  and  Prince  of  "Wales  to  a  place  of 
safety.     The  nation  became  divided  into  two  factions,  distin- 
guished as  Cavaliers  and  Roundheads,  and  both  parties  pre- 
pared for  the  great  struggle.     The   clergy,  the  universities^ 
the  landed  gentry,  and  a  majority  of  the  nobles  sided  witli 
the  king.     The  Roundheads  comprised  the  middle  classes  of 
England,  the  merchants,  shopkeepers,  yeomanry,  dissenters, 
parliamentarians,  and  a  formidable  minority  of  the  peerage. 

XL  Not  to  dwell  too  long  upon  this  period  of  our  sum- 
mary, we  will  briefly  detail  the  chief  events  of  that  deplora- 
ble conflict,  which  lasted  for  the  space  of  three  years,  and 
caused  the  effusion  of  so  much  English  blood.  Tfoe  royal 


64  OUTLINES    OF 

standard  was  first  erected  at  Nottingham,  August  25,  1642, 
and  the  first  engagement,  known  as  the  battle  of  Edgehill, 
was  fought  on  the  23d  of  the  October  following,  when  both 
sides  claimed  the  victory.  From  this  time,  no  great  event 
(unless  an  unimportant  advantage  gained  by  Charles  at  Strat- 
ton)  took  place  till  the  death  of  Hampden,  at  Chalgrave 
Field,  June  24,  1643.  In  1644,  the  Roundheads,  under  Sir 
Thomas  Fairfax,  signally  defeated  the  royalists  under  Prince 
Rupert,  at  the  famous  battle  of  Marston  Moor ;  and  on 
June  14,  1645,  was  fought  the  decisive  battle  of  Naseby,  in 
Northamptonshire,  when  the  king's  army  sustained  a  total 
defeat.  Fifty  thousand  of  his  soldiers  were  taken  prisoners, 
baggage  and  cannon  were  left  upon  the  field,  and  Charles 
fled  to  Scotland.  By  his  northern  subjects,  upon  whose  pro- 
tection he  had  thrown  himself,  he  was  basely  sold  over  to  the 
English  for  the  sum  of  £400,000. 

XII.  From  this  moment,  the  king's  doom  was  sealed. 
He  was  first  imprisoned  at  Hampton  Court,  then  in  Caris- 
brook  Castle,  then  in  Hurst  Castle,  Hampshire,  finally  in 
Windsor  Castle,  whence  he  was  brought  to  London,  to  go 
through  the  mockery  of  a  trial  at  St.  James's.     By  the  high 
court  of  justice  he  was  sentenced  to  death,  and  publicly  be- 
neaded  in  front  of  Whitehall  Palace,  on  the  30th  Jan.,  1649. 
"  A  great  shudder  ran  through  the  crowd  that  saw  the  deed, 
then  a  shriek,  and  then  all  immediately  dispersed."     Charles 
was  at  that  time  forty-eight  years  of  age,  and  had  reigned 
nearly  four  and  twenty  years. 

THE    COMMONWEALTH. 

XIII.  That  extraordinary  epoch  in  English  history,  known 
as  the  period  of  the  Commonwealth,  ensued.     Oliver  Crom- 
well, who  had  distinguished  himself  as  a  general  in  the  late 
wars,  received  the  command  of  the  Puritan  army  in  Ireland, 
(A.  D.    1649,)  and  there  defeated  the  royalists  with  great 
slaughter.     Having  reduced  that  country  to  submission,  he 
was  next  despatched  to  Scotland,  where  the  Parliament  had 
espoused  the  cause  of  the  Stuarts,  and  proclaimed  Prince 


ENGLISH   HISTORY.  65 

Charles  their  king.  Here  the  stern  Roundhead  was  every 
where  invincible;  the  Scotch  deserted  the  royal  standard. 
When  he  arrived  at  Worcester,  a  great  battle  was  fought  on 
the  3d  of  September,  1651;  and  the  king  was  forced  to 
make  his  escape  to  the  coast  of  France. 

XIV.  In  this  manner  the   authority   of  the   Parliament 
became  established  throughout  the  British  dominions.     The 
American  settlements,1  which  had  declared  for  the  king,  were 
subdued ;  Ireland  and  Scotland  silenced ;  Jersey,  Guernsey, 
Scilly,  and  the  Isle  of  Man,  brought  easily  under  subjection; 
and  an  immense  empire,  rich  in  fleets  and  armies,  in  crown 
lands  and  ecclesiastical  tfeasures,  was  governed  by  an  assem- 
blage of  some  sixty  or  seventy  men,  who  had  taken  upon 
themselves  to  alter  the  legislature  of  the  state,  and  to  behead 
a  great  king,  and  who,  in  their  present  position,  found  them- 
selves   holding    the    foremost  place   among   the   sovereign 
powers  of  Europe. 

XV.  Oliver   Cromwell,   having  entire   possession   of  the 
affection  and  confidence  of  the  army,  and  being  regarded  with 
suspicion  and  anxiety  by  the  Long  Parliament,  resolved  upon 
what  was,  perhaps,  the  boldest  step  of  his  life.     He  went 
with  three  hundred  soldiers  to  the  House  of  Commons,  (A.  D. 
1653,)  turned  out  the  members,  dissolved  the  assembly,  or- 
dered the  door  to  be  locked,  and  put  the  key  in  his  pocket. 
The  next  Parliament  was  called,  and  consisted  entirely  of 
ignorant  fanatics.2   These  men  resigned  office,  (Dec.  12, 1653,) 
and  vested  the  entire  administrative  power  in  Cromwell,  with 
the  title  of  Lord  Protector  of  the  Commonwealth  of  Eng- 
land.    Thus  the  oppressions  of  royalty  were  exchanged  for  a 
despotic  military  government. 

1  In  Virginia,  the  colonists  adhered  to  the  cause  of  the  royalists.    This 
brought  upon  them  the  vengeance  of  the  Parliament,  and  in  1652  a  fleet 
AVUS  tU'sputdu'd  to  reduce  them  to  submission. 

2  One  of  the  members  was  culli-d,  according  to  the  taste  of  the  age, 
Praise  God  Barebone,  a  leather  dealer,  and  from  him  the  Parliament  \vafl 
sailed  Barebone's  Parliament. 

6 


G6  OUTLINES  OP 

OLIVER  CROMWELL, 

PROTECTOR   OF   ENGLAND  FROM   A.    D.    1653   TO    1658. 

XVI.  THE  PROTECTORATE  was  inaugurated  by  a  succes- 
sion of  brilliant  victories,  and  the  recognition  of  the  English 
power  in  all  the  courts  of  Europe.     The  Dutch  were  brought 
to  sue  for  peace,  (A.  D.  1654,)  and  made  to  pay  an  indemni- 
fication of  £85,000.     Favorable   terms    subsisted   between 
Cromwell  and  Mazarin,  and  Dunkirk  became  a  dependency 
of  the  state.     The  years   1655  and  1656  saw  the  great  vic- 
tories of  the  English  fleets,  under  Admiral  Blake,  at  Algiers, 
Cadiz,  and  the  Canary  Islands;  and^  in  1655,  Admirals  Perm 
and  Venables  made  the  conquest  of  Jamaica. 

XVII.  Despite  all  this  prosperity,  the  Protector's  position 
was  far  from  being  safe  or  happy.     He  was  feared  and  dis- 
trusted on  all  sides,  threatened  by  numberless  conspiracies, 
and  a  prey  to  perpetual  anxiety.     A  tertian  ague  carried  him 
off  at  last,  (Sept.  3,  1658,)  in  the  fifty-ninth  year  of  his  age, 
and  in  the  ninth  of  his  usurpation.     He  appointed  his  son 
Richard  his  successor ;  but  the   army,  discontented  with  so 
young  and  irresolute  a  leader,  compelled  him  to  sign  his  ab- 
dication, and  the  officers  restored  the  Long  Parliament,  which 
Cromwell  had  forcibly  dissolved. 

XVIII.  This  Parliament,  however,  having   offended   the 
army,  was   again  dismissed,  and  General  Monk,  marching 
from   Scotland  with  eight  thousand  veterans,  (Jan.   1660,) 
compelled  the  London  forces  to   disperse.     A  new  Parlia- 
ment was  then  assembled,  and  the  restoration  of  royalty,  in 
the  person  of  the  exiled  Charles,  was  proposed  and  received 
with  universal  delight  both  by  the  Commons  and  the  people. 
So  ended  the  period  of  the  Commonwealth. 

Among  the  eminent  persons  who  flourished  during  the 
Protectorate  of  Cromwell,  was  John  Milton,  the  greatest  epic 
poet  that  England  has  ever  produced.  He  held  the  situation 
of  Latin  secretary  under  Cromwell,  and  was  permitted  to  re- 
tain the  emoluments  of  his  office  after  he  had  become  blind. 


ENGLISH    HISTORY. 


67 


After  the  restoration,  he  was  deprived  of  his  office ;  and  ft 
was  amid  all  the  distress  arising  from  blindness,  age,  and  pov- 
erty, that  Paradise  Lost,  the  most  sublime  poem  which 
adorns  any  language,  was  written. 


QUESTIONS   TO   CHAPTER  VI. 


I.  To  whom  did  the   crown 
descend  on  the  death  of  Eliza- 
beth ?    What  conspiracy  threat- 
ened   the     commencement    of 
James's   reign,   and  who  were 
the    parties    concerned    in    it  ? 
What  was  the  fate  of  Sir  W. 
Raleigh  ? 

II.  What  was  the  nature  of 
the  gunpowder  plot,  and  in  what 
year  was  it  discovered  ?     What 
occasioned    the     disagreements 
between  James  and  his  Parlia- 
ment ?    When  were  the  supplies 
withheld  ?     For    what    purpose 
was  the  title  of  baronet  created  ? 
What  great  discovery  was  made 
by  Dr.  Harvey  ?     Relate  the  in- 
ventions and   improvements  of 
this   reign.     By  whom  was  the 
New  River  Company  projected  ? 
Who  was  Mr.  T.  Sutton,  and 
what  charity  did  he  found  ? 

III.  Whom  did  the  king  mar- 
ry, and  what    family   hud    he  ? 
In  what  year  did  he  die,  and  at 
what  age  ? 

IV.  How  did  Charles  I.  com- 
mence his  reign  ?    What  means 
did  he  take  to  fit  out  a  fleet  for 
the  invasion  of   Spain  ?     How 
did  he  raise  money  without  the 
aid  of  Parliament,  and  for  how 
long  ? 

V.  When   did  Charles    sign 
the  petition  of  right,  and  what 
terms  did  he  therein  agree  to  ? 
When  did  he  issue  the  writs  for 
ship  money,  and  upon  what  pre- 
tence ?     To  what  unwarrantable 
degree  did  he  extend  this  exac- 
tion ? 

VI.  Who  offered  the  first  re- 


sistance ?  What  was  the  result 
of  Hampden's  efforts  ?  By  what 
acts  of  oppression  did  Charles 
follow  up  his  success  ? 

VII.  When  did  Charles  again 
call  a  Parliament  ?    How  did  he 
treat  that  body  ?     In  what  way 
did  he  insult  the  corporation  of 
London  ? 

VIII.  In  what  month  of  the 
same  year  did  he  again  call  a 
Parliament,  and  who  were  the 
leading  members  of  the  opposi- 
tion ?     What  great  reforms  did 
the  Parliament  effect  ? 

IX.  What  extraordinary  piece 
of  illegal  tyranny   did  Charles 
next  resort  to,  and  when  did  he 
carry  it  into  effect  ? 

X.  Where  did  Hampden  and 
his  friends  take  refuge  ?   In  what 
manner  did  they  return  to  Par- 
liament ?     What  became  of  the 
king   and    royal   family  ?    Into 
what    well-known   factions  was 
the  nation  divided  ?     Of  whom 
did  the  Cavaliers  consist  ?  What 
classes  constituted  the  Round- 
heads ? 

XI.  Where  and  when  was  the 
royal     standard    first    erected? 
When  was  the  battle  of  Edge- 
hill  fought  ?    Where  did  Hamp- 
den fall  ?     Relate  the  event  and 
date   of  the   battle  of  Marston 
Moor.     When  was  the  battle  of 
Naseby  fought,  and  with  what 
result  ?     What  was  the  conduct 
of  the  Scotch   upon   this   occa- 
sion ? 

XII.  At  what  places  was  the 
king    successively  imprisoned  ? 
By  what  court  was  he  sentenced  ? 


68 


OUTLINES    OF 


Relate  the  circumstances  and 
date  of  his  execution.  "What 
was  his  age  ?  How  long  had  he 
reigned  ? 

XIII.  What  period  ensued? 
Who  was  Oliver  Cromwell,  and 
when  was  he  sent  to  Ireland  ? 
Why  was  he  next  sent  to  Scot- 
land ?     What  was  the  result  of 
the  battle  of  Worcester  ? 

XIV.  In  what  countries  was 
the  authority  of  the  Parliament 
every  where  established  ?    What 
was  the  character  and  power  of 
the  Parliament  ? 

XV.  What    bold    step     did 
Cromwell  take  ?     Of  whom  did 
the   next    Parliament    consist? 
When  was   Cromwell  raised  to 
the  supreme  power  in  the  state  ? 

XVI.  Under    what    auspices 


did  the  Protectorate  commence  ? 
In  what  year  were  the  Dutch 
subdued  ?  What  terms  sub- 
sisted between  France  and  Eng- 
land? What  were  the  great 
victories  of  Admiral  Blake,  and 
when  did  they  take  place  ? 
What  were  the  conquests  of 
Penn  and  Venables  ? 

XVII.  \Vas     the    Protector 
happy  ?     When  did  he  die,  and 
from  what  cause  ?    Whom  did  he 
appoint  to  succeed  him  ?     What 
steps  were  taken  by  the  army  ? 

XVIII.  What  became  of  the 
Parliament  ?      What    was    the 
course  taken  by  General  Monk  ? 
In  what  way  ended  the  period 
of  the  Commonwealth  ?     What 
distinguished  poet  lived  in  the 
time  of  Cromwell  ? 


CHAPTER    VII. 


THE  HOUSE  OF  STUART,  (CONTINUED.) 

Began  to  reign. 

CHARLES  II A.  D.  1660 Died,  1685. 

JAMES  II "     1685.      .    .    .   Dethroned,  1688. 

CHARLES  II. 

BEGAN  TO  REIGN  A.  D.    1660.      DIED    1685. 

I.  KING  CHARLES  II.  came  to  the  throne  amid  the  univer- 
sal rejoicings  of  a  nation  anxious  to  welcome  the  restoration 
of  royalty.  Commencing  his  reign  with  clemency  and  mod- 
eration, he  passed  an  act  of  universal  pardon,  (excepting  only 
the  regicide  judges  and  more  furious  republicans,)  chose  his 
first  council  indifferently  from  both  loyalists  and  Presbyte- 
rians, and  proclaimed  entire  liberty  of  opinion  among  his 
people.  The  body  of  Cromwell,  however,  was  dug  up,  hung 
in  chains  at  Tyburn,  and  buried  under  the  gallows ;  but  was 
afterwards  removed  secretly,  and  re-interred,  as  some  assert, 
in  the  centre  of  Red  Lion  Square. 


ENGLISH    HISTORY.  69 

II.  It  was  supposed,  from  this  promising  beginning,  that 
Charles  would  be  found  an  easy  monarch,  and  that  nothing 
affecting  the  religion  or  liberty  of  the  nation  need  be  feared 
at  his  hands.     In  this  the  public  was  disappointed.     Having 
first  of  all  disbanded  the  fine  army  of  the  Commonwealth, 
the  king  began  to  follow  his  father's  evil  example  by  forcing 
Episcopacy  upon  the  Nonconformists.     This  step  raised  an 
outcry  of  discontent  throughout  the  kingdom ;  and  in  one  day, 
about  two  thousand  Presbyterian  ministers  gave  up  their  ben- 
efices because  they  would  not  embrace  a  new  faith ;  and  now 
the  church  of  England  began  to  persecute  its  former  perse- 
cutors. 

III.  He  next  declared  war  with  Holland,  (A.  D.  1665,) 
and  sent  out  an  English  fleet  under  the  command  of  his 
brother,  James,  Duke  of  York.     The  ship  of  Admiral  Op- 
dam,  the  Dutch  commander,  was  blown  up,  and  the  victory 
of  the  English  complete. 

IV.  In  the  years  1665  and  1666,  London  became  the  scene 
of  two  fearful  calamities,  exceeding  in  horror  any  that  were 
ever  known  to  befall  one  city  within  so  short  a  period.     A 
mortal  plague  spread  among  all  classes,  and  carried  off  in 
six  months  more  than  100,000  human  beings.     They  were 
buried  in  great  pits  dug  about  the  neighborhood  of  Moorfields 
and  Tothill  Fields,  and  every  night  the  dead  carts  traversed 
the  melancholy  streets,  in  which  the  unaccustomed  grass  grew 
rankly,  and  no  other  traffic  now  was  known.     Scarcely  had 
this  sickness  begun  to  decline,  when  a  fire,  unexampled  in 
Europe  since  the  destruction  of  Home  under  Nero,  "  laid  in 
ruins  the  whole  city,  from  the  Tower  to  the  Temple,  and  from 
the  river  to  the  purlieus  of  Smithfield."     This  conflagration 
destroyed  four  hundred  streets,  and  thirteen  thousand  two 
hundred   dwelling  houses,  beside   eighty-nine  churches,  St. 
Paul's  Cathedral,  the  Royal  Exchange,  the  Custom  House, 
Guildhall,  and  many  other  important  public  buildings.     It 
lasted  without  intermission  for  four  days,  and  was  only  stopped 
at  last  by  the  blowing  up  of  houses. 

6* 


70  OUTLINES    OF 

V.  Taking  advantage  of  this  period  of  the  national  weak- 
ness and  distress,  the  Dutch  fleet,  under  command  of  Admi- 
ral De  Ruyter,  sailed  up  the  Thames,  (A.  D.    1667,)  and 
burned  the  ships  of  war  which  lay  at  Chatham.     This  was  the 
first,  and  happily  the  last  time  that  the  roar  of  foreign  guns 
was  heard  to  echo  through  the  streets  of  London.     A  dis- 
graceful peace  was  shortly  afterwards  concluded. 

VI.  The  great  imposition  known  as  the  Popish  Plot  took 
place  in  1678.     A  discreditable  character,  one  Titus  Gates, 
constructed  a  hideous  fiction,  which  he  found  the  nation  only 
too  ready  to  believe.     He  gave  out  that  the  Papists  were 
preparing  for  the  destruction  of  London  by  fire,  the  assassi- 
nation of  the  king,  and  the  betrayal  of  the  country  into  the 
hands  of  the  French.     Just  at  this  juncture,  the  mysterious 
murder  of  Sir  Edmondsbury  Godfrey,  a  Protestant  magis- 
trate, lent  all  the  coloring  of  truth  to  his  assertions.     Many 
innocent  persons  were  in  consequence  arrested  and  executed, 
and  among  others  the  aged  and  illustrious  Earl  of  Stafford 
fell  a  victim  to  calumny,  and  was  beheaded  on  Tower  Hill, 
December  29,  1680. 

VII.  In  the  year  1679  was  passed  the  habeas  corpus  act. 
This  act,  next  in  importance  to  Magna  Charta,  is  one  of  the 
bulwarks  of  individual  safety.     So  long  as  the  statute  remains 
in  force,  no  subject  of  England  can  be  detained  in  prison, 
except  where  such  detention  is  shown  to  be  justified  by  law. 

VIII.  The  Lords  Shaftesbury  and  Russell,  in  conjunction 
with  the  Duke  of  Monmouth,  the  Earl  of  Essex,  Algernon 
Sidney,  and  others,  were  discovered  (A.  D.  1680)  to  be  the 
authors  of  a  treasonable  conspiracy,  having  for  its  object  the 
death  of  the  king.     This  was  the  famous  Rye  House  Plot, 
so  called  from  the  conspirators'  place  of  meeting.     Length- 
ened trials  ensued.     Monmouth  escaped ;  Russell,  the  most 
popular  man  of  his  day,  was  executed  in  Lincoln's  Inn  Fields, 
July  21,  1683  ;   the  Earl  of  Essex  was  found  with  his  throat 
cut  in  his  cell  at  the  Tower ;  Shaftesbury  absconded  to  Hol- 
land ;  and  Sidney  suffered  the  extreme  penalty  of  the  law, 
December  7,  1683. 


ENGLISH   HISTORY.  71 

IX.  The  king  was  at  this  time,  (A.  D.  1685,)  as  absolute  a 
sovereign  as  any  in  Europe  ;  but  his  power  was  destined  not 
to  be  of  long  duration.     Towards  the  beginning  of  February, 
1685,  he  was  attacked  by  what  seemed  to  be  a  fit  of  apo- 
plexy, and  soon  after  expired  without  a  struggle.     Before 
dying,  he  received  the  sacraments  of  the  Romish  church  —  an 
act  which  proved  that  although  he  had  always  passed  for  a 
Protestant  king,  he  cherished  another  religion  in  his  heart. 
Charles  was  fifty-nine  years  old  at  the  time  of  his  death,  and 
had  reigned  twenty-five  years.     His  character  has  been  thus 
briefly  summed  up  by  a  modern  historian :  "  Charles  was  the 
falsest,  meanest,  merriest  of  mankind." 1 

JAMES  II. 

BEGAN  TO  REIGN  A.  D.    1685.      DETHRONED   1689. 

X.  JAMES  II.,  brother  to  the  late  king,  had  distinguished 
himself  as  a  naval  commander,  but  was  unpopular  with  the 
general  public  on  account  of  his  gloomy  temper  and  the  ill 
favor  in  which  his  religion  was  held.     He  had  been  brought 
up  to  the  Roman  Catholic  persuasion,  and  his  first  acts  were 
to  go  openly  to  mass,  to  sanction  the  erection  of  Jesuit  col- 
leges, and  to    establish    Roman   Catholic  bishops.     These 
things  much  displeased  the  nation ;   and  so,  when  the  Duke 
of  Monmouth  (an  illegitimate  son  of  the  late  king)  came  over 
to  England,  set  up  his  standard  in  Dorsetshire,  and  claimed 
the  crown,  thousands  flocked  to  his  aid,  and  he  found  himself, 
in  a  very  few  days,  at  the  head  of  a  considerable  army.     He 
was  defeated  at  Sedgemore,  a  village  near  Bridgewater,  and 
being  hotly  pursued,  was  found  concealed  in  a  field,  hidden 
among  branches  of  fern,  and  utterly  worn  out  with  hunger 

1  During  this  reign  the  English  colonists  in  North  America  were  greatly 
increased  in  numbers ;  but  they  did  not  escape  persecution  even  in  Ameri- 
ca. Several  of  the  governors  appointed  by  the  crown  had  distinguished 
themselves  by  then*  oppressive  measures ;  and  in  1683  Charles  issued  a 
writ  withdrawing  the  several  charters.  This  led  to  serious  difficmlties  in 
the  colonies. 


72  OUTLINES    OF 

and  fatigue.  Despite  his  supplications  for  mercy,  James  was 
inexorable,  and  the  unhappy  young  man  was  executed,  July 
15,  1685. 

XL  The  most  savage  persecutions  followed.  Twenty 
prisoners  were  hung  upon  the  field  of  battle ;  but  to  the  in- 
famous memory  of  Judge  Jeffreys  (the  most  bloodthirsty  of 
legal  murderers)  belong  the  chief  horrors  of  what  has  been 
called  the  English  reign  of  terror.  Hundreds  of  victims,  old 
and  young,  were  sacrificed  for  having  been  implicated  in  the 
rebellion  ;  and  in  Scotland  people  were  hanged  and  drowned 
for  refusing  to  repeat  the  Creed.  The  English  fleet  mutinied 
because  James  had  ordered  mass  to  be  read  on  board  the 
vessels,  and  the  Bishop  of  London  was  suspended  from  office. 

XII.  The  king  next  issued  a  proclamation  of  entire  liberty 
of  conscience  to  his  subjects  —  a  proceeding  which,  although 
it  bore  a  fair  appearance,  was  known  to  be  solely  put  forward 
for  the  favoring  of  Roman  Catholicism.  Seven  bishops  of 
the  church  of  England  undertook  to  deliver  a  remonstrance 
to  the  king,  especially  concerning  that  clause  of  his  proclama- 
tion in  which  he  desired  that  it  should  be  read  in  all  the 
churches  upon  the  conclusion  of  divine  service.  For  this 
courageous  resistance,  the  bishops  were  arrested  and  thrown 
into  the  Tower,  (June  29,  1688 ;)  but,  being  acquitted  upon 
their  trial,  were  regarded  as  the  saviours  of  the  Protestant 
religion,  and  were  met  every  where  by  rejoicing  thousands. 

XIH.  It  was  while  affairs  were  in  this  position  that  the 
eyes  of  all  men  were  turned  for  deliverance  to  "William, 
Prince  of  Orange,  who  had  married  Mary,  the  eldest  daugh- 
ter of  James.  This  wise  and  politic  prince,  being  invited  over 
by  the  clergy  and  the  people,  left  Holland  with  a  fleet  of  five 
hundred  vessels  and  an  army  of  fourteen  thousand  men, 
and  landed  at  Torbay  on  the  5th  of  November,  1688.  Here 
he  was  joined  by  the  nobility,  clergy,  and  military ;  even  by 
Lord  Churchill,  who  owed  every  thing  to  the  bounty  of  the 
king ;  and  by  Prince  George  of  Denmark  and  his  wife,  the 
Princess  Anne,  second  daughter  to  James. 


ENGLISH   HISTORY. 


73 


XIV.  In  this  manner  the  crown  changed  hands  without 
the  striking  of  a  blow.  James  was  confined  at  Rochester, 
but  was  permitted  to  escape  to  France,  where  he  afterwards 
died ;  and  the  Prince  and  Princess  of  Orange  were  proclaimed 
joint  king  and  queen  of  England  on  the  13th  February,  1689. 


QUESTIONS  TO  CHAPTER  VII. 


I.  "With  what  measures  did 
Charles    commence  his  reign? 
What  indignities  were   offered 
to  the  body  of  Cromwell  ? 

II.  By  what  unpopular  meas- 
ure  did  Charles  lose  the  good 
opinion  of  the   people  ?     How 
were  his  commands  received  by 
the  Presbyterian  ministers  ? 

III.  In  what  year  was  war 
declared  with  Holland,  and  how 
ended  the  first  engagement  ? 

IV.  What     calamity    befell 
London    in   1665?    When    did 
the  great  fire  take  place  ?     How 
long  did  it  last,  and  what  was 
the  extent  of  the  destruction  ? 

V.  In     what    way   did    the 
Dutch  take   advantage   of   the 
distress,  and  in  what  year  ? 

VI.  When    was   the   Popish 
Plot  set  on  foot,  and  by  whom  ? 
Relate  the  purport  of   Oates's 
statements.      When    was    the 
Earl  of  Stafford  beheaded  ? 

VII.  In  what  year  was  the 
habeas     corpus     act      passed  ? 
What  is  the  purport  of  the  act  ? 

VIII.  What  illustrious  gen- 
tlemen were  concerned  in   the 
Rye  House  Plot?    What  were 
their  respective  fates  ? 

IX.  What  was  the  power  of 
the  king  at  this  time?     When 
did    he    die  ?      What    was  the 
cause  of  his  death  ?    What  sac- 
raments did  he  receive  ?    What 


was  his*  age  ?  How  long  had 
he  reigned?  What  was  his 
character  ? 

X.  By   whom   was    Charles 
succeeded?     With    what    acts 
did  James  commence  his  reign  ? 
How  was  the    insurrection  of 
Monmouth  received  by  the  peo- 
ple?     How  did    his    rebellion 
terminate,   and  what   was   his 
end? 

XI.  How  did  the  king's  army 
treat  the  prisoners  ?    What  in- 
famous judge  was  appointed  to 
try  the  rebels  ?    What  were  the 
cruel  results  ?    What  took  place 
in  the  English  fleet,  and  what 
bishop    was     suspended     from 
office  ? 

XII.  What  was  the  real  ten- 
dency of  the  king's  order  re- 
specting liberty  of  conscience  ? 
Who  protested  against  it  ?  How 
was  this  remonstrance  received  ? 
What  was    the    event   of   the 
trial? 

XIII.  To  whom  did  the  peo- 
ple look  for  assistance  ?    With 
what  army  and  how  many  ships 
did  Prince  William   leave  Hol- 
land ?    When  and  where  did  he 
land  ?    By  whom  was  his  stan- 
dard joined  ? 

XIV.  Did  the  crown  change 
hands  easily  ?    What  became  of 
James  ?     When  were  the  new 
sovereigns  proclaimed  ? 


74  OUTLINES    OP 

CHAPTER   VIII. 

UNITED  HOUSES  OF  STUART  AND  NASSAU. 

Began  to  reign.  Died. 

KINO  WILLIAM  IIL A.  D.  1689 1702. 

QUEEN  MARY  II «    1689 1694. 

QUEEN  ANNE, "    1702 1714. 

WILLIAM  TTT- 

BEGAN  TO  REIGN  A.   D.    1689.      DIED   1702. 

L  WILLIAM  ILL,  throughout  his  reign  in  Engknd,  (for 
Queen  Mary  had  little  to  do  with  affairs  of  state,  and  died 
before  her  husband,)  was  troubled  with  treachery  at  home  and 
warfare  abroad.  A  great  war  with  France  continued  nearly 
the  whole  time ;  *  and  not  only  his  crown,  but  his  life,  was  sev- 
eral times  attempted  by  the  emissaries  of  the  exiled  James, 
The  latter  went  over  to  Ireland  in  the  spring  of  1689,  raised 
an  army  of  forty  thousand  men,  and  besieged  Londonderry. 
Failing  in  his  attempt  to  reduce  that  city,  he  was  forced  to 
retreat  with  a  loss  of  nine  thousand  men,  and  being  met  on 
the  banks  of  the  River  Boyne  (June  30,  1690)  by  King  Wil- 
liam arid  his  army,  was  signally  defeated. 

n.  The  late  king  was  not  yet  discouraged  by  these  failure?, 
but  fought  a  last  battle  at  Aughrim,  and  was  forced  to  re- 
treat to  Limerick.  Here,  finding  all  chance  of  victory  gone, 
his  adherents  capitulated,  and  above  fourteen  thousand  of 
them  followed  him  to  France. 

ILL  William  of  Orange  was  a  great  general,  and  the  bra- 
vest of  soldiers.  War  was  his  element,  and  in  raising  sums 

1  This  war  between  England  and  France  extended  to  their  colonial  pos- 
sessions in  America,  known  in  American  history  as  King  William's  War. 
In  the  commencement  of  this  war  the  French  and  Indians  perpetrated  the 
most  horrid  barbarities  upon  the  settlements  in  the  northern  colonies.  In 
Dover,  New  Hampshire,  a  garrison  was  surprised,  and  many  of  the  inmates 
were  murdered  or  carried  into  captivity.  Schenectady,  New  York,  was 
burned,  and  most  of  the  inhabitants  inhumanly  massacred. 


ENGLISH   HISTORY.  75 

for  the  prosecution  of  his  military  plans,  he  plunged  the 
government  into  that  great  national  debt  which  it  has  never 
since  been  able  to  discharge.  Peace  was,  however,  concluded 
at  Ryswick,  after  eight  years  of  bloodshed,  (September  22, 
1697 ;)  and  on  the  8th  of  March,  1702,  England  lost  this 
remarkable  and  celebrated  sovereign.  He  was  just  fifty-two 
years  of  age,  and  was  succeeded  by  his  wife's  sister,  the  sec- 
ond daughter  of  King  James.  Among  the  distinguished 
persons  who  lived  during  this  reign  were  Dryden,  Sir  Isaac 
Newton,  John  Locke,  Archbishop  Tillotson,  and  Bishop 
Burnet. 

ANNE. 
BEGAN  TO  KEIGN  A.  D.  1702.    DIED  1714. 

IV.  ANNE  now  reigned  in  England,  and  her  reign  is  the 
liistory  of  constant  but  brilliant  warfare.     The  court  of  Ver- 
sailles had  acknowledged  Charles  Edward,  the  son  of  James 
II.,  as  Prince  of  Wales.     Queen  Anne  felt  this  to  be  both  a 
political  and  personal  insult,  and  declared  for  war.     Lord 
Churchill,  now  Duke  of  Marlborough,  received  the  command 
of  the  English  army,  as  well  as  that  of  the  Dutch,  who  sided 
with  England.    The  Germans  joined  the  alliance ;  the  Neth- 
erlands were  speedily  cleared  of  the  invader ;  several  towns 
were  taken  by  siege  j  and  the  first  of  a  series  of  splendid 
victories  was  fought  at  Blenheim,  August  2,  1704.    In  this 
year,  also,  the  fortress  of  Gibraltar  was  taken  by  Sir  G. 
Rooke,  and  has  remained  in    possession  of  England  ever 
since. 

V.  The  next  great  victory  which  brought  glory  to  Marl- 
borough  was  the  famous  battle  of  Ramillies,  (May  23,  1706 ;) 
and  in  the  autumn  of  the  same  year  were  finally  united  the 
kingdoms    of  England  and    Scotland.     Though  these  two 
countries  had  since  the  accession  of  James  I.  acknowledged 
but  one  sovereign,  they  had  enjoyed  separate  laws  and  sepa- 
rate Parliaments ;  now  both  were  represented  at  Westmin- 
ster, and  the  union  was  ratified  as  it  still  exists. 


76  OUTLINES    OF 

VI.  The  year  1708  was  signalized  by  the  victory  of  Ou- 
denarde,  gained  by  the  Duke  of  Marlborough ;  which  was 
followed,  in   1709,  by  the  equally  brilliant  battle  of  Malpla- 
quet     Shortly  after  this,  by  a  system  of   court  intrigues 
the  particulars  of  which  would  detain  us  too  long  in  this 
place,  the  Duke  of  Marlborough  and  his  wife  (to  whom  the 
queen  had  been  greatly  attached)  fell  into  disgrace.     The 
great  general  was  dismissed  from  his  command,  and  a  treaty 
of  peace  was  entered  upon  at  the  celebrated  conference  of 
Utrecht     By  this  instrument,  signed  in  April,   1713,  Eng- 
land's glory  and  interest  were  secured.     To  her  jurisdiction 
France  resigned  Hudson's  Bay,  Nova  Scotia,  and  Newfound- 
land.1    Spain   relinquished  Gibraltar  and  Minorca;  and  the 
fortifications  of  Dunkirk,  which  might  have  proved  dangerous 
to  her  trade  in  time  of  war,  were  demolished.    The  rest  of 
Europe  was  dealt  by  with  equal  fairness. 

VII.  Soon  after  this  event  the  health  of  Queen  Anne  de- 
clined, and  on  the  31st  of  July,  1714,  she  died,  at  the  age  of 
forty-nine.     She  had  reigned  for  twelve  years,  was  much  be- 
loved by  the  people,  and  went  by  the  glorious  and  enviable 
title  of  "  the  good  Queen  Anne."     During  her  reign  Addi- 
son,  Steele,  Pope,  Bolingbroke,  Gay,  Swift,  Prior,  and  other 
famous  wits  and  poets,  whose  works   are  considered  to  be 
the  national  classics,  lived  and  wrote.     This  epoch  is  styled 
the  Augustan  age  of  English  literature. 

l  This  war  is  known  in  American  history  as  "  Queen  Anne's  War."  Be- 
fore the  commencement  of  hostilities  New  York  had  concluded  a  treaty  of 
neutrality  between  the  Five  Nations  and  the  French  governor  in  Canada ; 
the  whole  weighj  of  the  war,  therefore,  fell  upon  New  England.  In  1701 
the  citizens  despatched  an  armament  against  Port  Royal,  in  Nova  Scotia ; 
and  having  taken  possession  of  the  place,  they  called  it  Annapolis,  in  honor 
of  Queen  Anne.  During  the  war  the  New  England  colonies  suffered  greatly 
from  the  incursions  of  the  French  and  Indians  from  Canada;  but  after  the 
treaty  of  Utrecht  was  known  in  America,  the  Indians  sued  for  peace.  After 
this  the  colonies  enjoyed  comparative  quiet  and  prosperity  for  nearly  thirty 
years. 


ENGLISH    HISTORY. 


77 


QUESTIONS  TO   CHAPTER  VIII. 


I.  Was   the     reign  of   Wil- 
liam peaceful  and  prosperous  ? 
Whither    did    James     repair  ? 
What    army  did  he    assemble, 
and  what  town  besiege  ?     When 
was    the  battle    of  the  Boyne 
fought,    and    with    what     suc- 
cess : 

II.  When  did  James  fight  his 
last  battle  ?    What  took  place 
at  Limerick  ? 

III.  What  was  the  cause  of 
the  national  debt  ?    When  and 
where    was   peace     concluded  ? 
When  did  William  die  ?    What 
was  his  age,  and  by  whom  was 
he  succeeded  ? 

IV.  Why    did  Queen  Anne 
declare  war  with  France  ?  Who 
became  allies  with  the  English, 
and  who  was   appointed    com- 
mander-in-chief  ?   What  success 
had  Marlborough  in  the  Nether- 
lands, and  when  did  he  win  his 
first  great  victory  ?  What  other 


important  acquisition  was  made 
in  this  year  ? 

V.  What  was  the  next  victo- 
ry   gained     by    Marlborough  ? 
What    great    legal    event  took 
place   in   the  autumn  of  1706  ? 
What  had  been  the  points   of 
separation     between     England 
and    Scotland  ?     In    what  way 
were  they  removed  ? 

VI.  What  were  the  two  great 
victories    of   1708    and    1709  ? 
How  did  it  happen  that  Marl- 
borough    lost    his    command  ? 
Where  was  the  peace  conference 
held  ?    What  glorious    conces- 
sions were  made  by  France  and 
Spain  to  the  arms  of  England  ? 

VII.  When  did  Queen  Anne 
die  ?    What  was  her  age  ?     By 
what   popular    name    was    she 
known  ?    What  celebrated  liter- 
ary characters  lived  during  the 
reign  ?    By  what  name  is  the 
age  distinguished  ? 


CHAPTER    IX. 
THE  HOUSE   OF  BRUNSWICK. 


Began  to  reign. 

GEORGE  I A.  D.  1714.  . 

GEORGE  II «  1727.  . 

GEORGE  IH «  1760.  . 


Died. 
1727. 
1760. 
1820. 


GEORGE  I. 

BEGAN  TO  REIGN  A.  D.    1714.      DIED   1727. 

I.   GEORGE  I.  of  Brunswick,  Elector  of  Hanover,  and  di- 
rect descendant  of  James  I.,  succeeded  to  the  "  good  Queen 
Anne."     He  was  fifty-four  years  of  age  when  he  received  the 
crown,  and  was  preceded  by  a  character  for  sagacity,  experi- 
7 


78  OUTLINES    OF 

ence,  and  industry,  which  led  the  nation  to  expect  a  happy 
and  peaceable  reign.  However,  he  soon  showed  that  he 
could  be  vindictive  towards  those  of  the  nobility  who  had 
been  unfavorable  to  his  succession.  The  Duke  of  Ormond, 
Lord  Bolingbroke,  and  the  Earls  of  Oxford  and  Mortimer, 
were  impeached  of  high  treason,  and  Matthew  Prior,  the 
poet,  was  taken  into  custody.  The  Duke  of  Ormond  and 
Bolingbroke,  having  fled  to  the  continent,  were  degraded  from 
their  rank ;  their  names  and  arms  were  razed  from  the  list  of 
peers,  and  their  estates  confiscated.  Lord  Oxford  was  set  at 
liberty. 

TL  Rebellion  now  broke  out  in  Scotland,  (A.  D.  1715,) 
and  the  son  of  James  II.,  known  as  the  Pretender,  was  there 
supported  by  the  interest  of  the  Earl  of  Mar,  and  by  arms, 
ammunition,  and  soldiers  from  France.  Insurrections  were 
also  started  in  various  parts  of  the  western  counties,  but  were 
promptly  quelled  by  Generals  Carpenter,  Wills,  and  Pepper. 
Many  noblemen  and  gentlemen  of  rank  and  substance  took 
part  in  these  disastrous  risings ;  the  prisons  of  London  were 
crowded  with  unhappy  captives ;  the  Lords  Derwentwater, 
and  Kenmure,  on  the  24th  of  February,  were  executed  ;  five 
persons  of  inferior  rank  were  hanged  at  Tyburn,  two-and- 
twenty  at  Preston  and  Manchester,  and  about  a  thousand 
were  transported.  The  king  would  hear  of  no  mercy. 

III.  Perhaps  the  most  extraordinary  event  in  the  reign  of 
this  sovereign  was  the  great  South  Sea  bubble.  We  will  en- 
deavor to  explain  the  nature  of  the  speculation  as  briefly  as 
possible.  During  the  reign  of  William  III.,  the  government 
was  obliged  to  borrow  money  (for  war  purposes)  from  differ- 
ent companies  of  merchants,  and  among  the  rest,  from  the 
South  Sea  traders.  For  this  particular  debt  the  government 
was  paying  an  annual  interest  of  £500,000.  In  1720,  one 
Blunt,  a  scrivener,  came  to  the  ministry  in  the  name  of  this 
company,  and  proposed  to  them  that  the  South  Sea  Company 
should  become  sole  creditor  to  the  state  by  the  purchase 


ENGLISH   HISTORY.  79 

of  the  debts  of  all  the  other  companies.  Having  bought  up 
these,  the  company  offered  to  accept  an  interest  of  five  per 
cent,  for  the  first  six  years,  and  a  reduced  interest  of  four  per 
cent,  ever  after,  till  the  Parliament  found  itself  in  a  position 
to  pay  it  off  altogether.  But  the  company  was  not  rich 
enough  to  make  this  gigantic  purchase  from  its  existent 
funds,  and  they  proceeded  to  raise  money  by  opening  a  sub- 
scription for  trading  in  the  South  Seas,  by  which  traffic  they 
persuaded  the  public  that  great  fortunes  were  to  be  made. 
Thus  deluded,  the  purchasers  of  South  Sea  stock  poured  in 
by  thousands,  and  the  government  creditors  sold  their  gov- 
ernment stock  for  that  of  the  South  Sea  Company.  It  was 
even  advanced  that  the  government  was  about  to  exchange 
Gibraltar  for  a  portion  of  Peru ;  than  which  any  thing  more 
chimerical  can  hardly  be  conceived.  The  bubble  exploded,  the 
directors'  estates,  to  the  value  of  £2,014,000  were  seized  in 
1721,  and  many  thousand  families  were  overwhelmed  with  ruin. 

IV.  The  king,  who  had  not  been  over  to  inspect  his  Hano- 
verian dominions  for  some  time,  resolved  to  pay  them  a  visit 
in  the  month  of  June,  1727.     He  embarked  for  Holland  ac- 
cordingly ;  but  while  travelling  in  his  carriage  from  Delden» 
where  he  had  passed  the  night,  was  taken  suddenly  ill,  and 
expired  at  Osnaburgh  the  next  morning,  in  the  sixty-eighth 
year  of  his  age,  and  the  thirteenth  of  his  reign. 

GEORGE  II. 

BEGAN  TO  REIGN  A.  D.    1727.      DIED    1760. 

V.  GEORGE  II.  succeeded  to  his  father  when  forty-four 
years  of  age,  and  his  son,  being  summoned  over  from  Hano- 
ver, took  his  rank  as  Prince  of  Wales.     A  misunderstanding 
with  Spain  occurred  early  in  this  reign.     In  consequence  of 
the  discovery  of  some  illicit  trading  vessels  commanded  by 
Knglishmen,  the  Spanish  guardships  seized  indiscriminately 
upon  innocent  and  guilty,  and  subjected  the  captains  of  mer- 
chant vessels  to  considerable  annoyance.    Admiral  Vernon  was 


80  OUTLINES    OF 

therefore  sent  out  with  a  fleet  of  six  ships  to  attack  the 
Spanish  settlements  in  America,  (A.  D.  1739.)  Here  he  was 
uniformly  victorious.  Having  taken  Porto  Bello,  he  bom- 
barded Carthagena,  and  took  Fort  Chagre,  while  Commodore 
Anson  attacked  the  city  of  Paita,  on  the  coast  of  Peru,  cap- 
tured a  valuable  Spanish  galleon,  and  returned  home  kden 
with  booty. 

VI.  The  death  of  Charles  VI.,  Emperor  of  Germany,  in 
1740,  afforded  the  French  an  opportunity  to  interfere  with  the 
succession  of  that  empire.  Setting  aside  the  hereditary  claims 
of  the  emperor's  daughter,  Maria  Theresa,  Queen  of  Hungary, 
they  caused  the  Elector  of  Bavaria  to  be  raised  to  the  imperial 
throne,  whilst  the  King  of  Prussia  grasped  the  provinces  of 
Silesia.  At  this  juncture  England  came  forward  to  assist  the 
cause  of  justice,  and  her  example  being  followed  by  Holland, 
Sardinia,  and  Russia,  the  elector  was  obliged  to  fly,  and  Ma- 
ria Theresa  reigned  in  her  father's  kingdom. 

VH.  The  French  declared  for  war,1  (A.  D.  1743,)  and 
being  met  on  the  banks  of  the  Mayne  by  the  English  army 
under  command  of  the  king  in  person,  were  signally  de- 
feated by  a  force  numbering  twenty  thousand  less  than  their 
own.  This  was  the  famous  battle  of  Dettingen.  Mean- 
while Prince  Charles  Edward,  son  to  the  Pretender,  and 
grandson  to  James  H.,  made  a  bold  stroke  for  the  English 

1  This  war  is  known  in  European  history  as  "  the  War  of  the  Austrian 
Succession."  In  American  history  it  is  commonly  called  "  King  George's 
War."  The  most  important  event  in  America  was  the  seizure  and  capture 
of  Louisburg,  on  the  Island  of  Cape  Breton.  After  the  peace  of  Utrecht, 
the  French  had  strongly  fortified  this  place  at  an  immense  expense,  and  the 
conquest  of  it  was  deemed  hy  the  colonies  of  the  highest  importance.  An 
expedition  was  undertaken  without  the  knowledge  of  the  English  govern- 
ment. Massachusetts,  Connecticut,  New  Hampshire,  and  Rhode  Island 
raised  their  respective  quota  of  troops ;  New  York  furnished  artillery,  and 
Pennsylvania  provisions.  The  troops  numbered  four  thousand,  and  the  naval 
force  consisted  of  twelve  ships.  This  force  was  joined  by  an  English  fleet, 
under  the  command  of  Commodore  Warren,  and  Louisburg  capitulated  on 
the  16th  of  June,  A.  D.  1745.  By  this  conquest,  security  was  given  to  the 
colonies  in  their  fisheries,  Nova  Scotia  was  preserved,  and  the  trade  and 
fisheries  of  France  were  nearly  ruined. 


ENGLISH  HISTORY.  81 

crown.  He  landed  in  Scotland  with  a  few  desperate  adventur- 
ers, seven  officers,  and  arms  for  only  two  thousand  men,  gained 
an  unimportant  victory  over  Sir  John  Cope  at  Preston  Pans,  and 
took  possession  of  Dunkeld,  Perth,  Dundee,  and  Edinburgh. 
He  then  reduced  Carlisle,  and  advanced  into  England ;  but 
not  finding  himself  supported  there,  he  retreated  northward, 
followed  by  the  English  army  and  the  Duke  of  Cumberland. 
Upon  the  plain  of  Culloden  the  cause  of  the  Stuarts  was  for- 
ever lost.  A  great  battle  was  fought  on  the  16th  April, 
1746.  The  loss  of  the  English  scarcely  exceeded  200  men, 
while  2500  Scots  were  left  on  the  field.  Charles  Edward 
sought  safety  in  flight,  escaped  through  countless  dangers, 
and  died  at  Rome  in  1788. 

VHI.  Warfare  abroad  and  rebellion  at  home  induced  Eng- 
land to  regard  with  favor  a  negotiation  proposed  between  the 
belligerent  powers  in  the  year  1748.  At  Aix-la-Chapelle  a 
treaty  was  thereupon  concluded,  by  which  all  nations  were 
pacified,  and  peace  prevailed  in  Europe.  Not  so,  however,  in 
North  America.  For  more  than  a  half  century  the  several 
colonies  had  been  engaged  for  most  of  the  time  in  a  costly 
and  sanguinary  struggle  with  the  French  and  Indians,  in  which 
they  became  involved  by  reason  of  their  connection  with 
England.  Whenever  England  declared  war  against  France, 
her  American  colonies  were  called  upon  to  sustain  themselves 
in  their  contests  with  the  French  colonists,  who  were  settled 
in  Canada,  and  their  Indian  allies ;  but  in  1755  hostilities 
commenced  in  America,  which  ultimately  extended  throughout 
Europe.  A  series  of  encroachments  had  long  been  made  by 
France  on  the  English  colonies,  who  now  prepared  to  resist 
them.  Expeditions  against  the  several  French  forts  and  set- 
tlements were  fitted  out  with  various  successes ;  but  in  1759 
a  grand  and  decisive  victory  was  obtained  by  General  Wolfe, 
in  Canada,  which  led  to  the  surrender  of  Quebec,  and  soon 
after  (A.  D.  1763)  to  the  total  cession  of  all  Canada.  Gen- 
eral Wolfe  was  lulled  upon  the  field  of  battle. 

IX.  But  the  glory  of  the  great  British  name  was  still 
7* 


82  OUTLINES    OF 

further  increased  by  the  splendid  successes  of  Clive  in  the 
East  Indies.  Terribly  revenging  the  death  of  123  English 
subjects  in  a  narrow  prison  called  the  Black  Hole,  this  gallant 
soldier  attacked  and  took  Calcutta,  January,  1757,  afterwards 
winning  a  second  splendid  victory  at  Plassey,  by  which  was 
acquired  the  province  of  Bengal,  a  district  exceeding  in  size 
the  whole  extent  of  Great  Britain,  and  in  wealth,  fertility,  and 
natural  advantages,  all  the  provinces  of  the  East. 

X.  King  George  IE.,  in  the  midst  of  his  glories  and 
successes,  died  quite  suddenly,  from  a  rupture  of  the  right 
ventricle  of  the  heart,  (October  25,  1760,)  being  then  in  the 
seventy-seventh  year  of  his  age,  and  the  thirty-third  of  his 
reign.  In  consequence  of  the  death  of  Frederic,  Prince  of 
Wales,  some  nine  years  previously,  the  king  was  succeeded 
by  his  grandson,  under  the  title  of  George  III. 


GEORGE  III. 

BEGAN  TO  REIGN  A.  D.    1760.      DIED   1820. 

XL  GEORGE  III.  ascended  the  throne  of  England  at  a  period 
when  her  arms  abroad  and  the  progress  of  her  wealth  and 
civilization  at  home  had  rendered  the  position  of  the  monarch 
one  of  the  most  enviable  and  illustrious  in  the  whole  world. 
The  first  remarkable  event  in  this  reign  was  the  declaration 
of  war  between  England  and  Spain,  in  1762.  Altogether 
this  was  one  of  the  most  glorious  wars  ever  earned  on  in 
any  age  by  any  people.  In  the  course  of  seven  years  were 
won  twelve  great  battles  by  land  and  sea.  Twenty-five 
islands,  nine  fortified  cities,  and  forty  forts  and  castles  were 
taken ;  a  hundred  ships  of  war  were  captured ;  and  more  than 
twelve  millions  sterling  were  acquired  as  plunder.  France 
and  Spain  at  length  became  anxious  to  terminate  a  war  which 
had  been  so  disastrous  to  them,  and  a  general  treaty  of 
peace  was  concluded  at  Paris  on  the  10th  of  February,  1763. 

XII.   Soon  after  the  peace  of  Paris,  serious  troubles  arose 


%- 

ENGLISH   HISTORY.  83 

between  England  and  her  North  American  colonies.  Eng- 
land had  incurred  an  immense  debt  by  the  late  war  with 
France,  and  Parliament  determined  that,  as  the  war  had  been 
waged  chiefly  on  account  of  the  colonies,  the  colonies  should 
bear  their  share  of  the  expense.  They  accordingly  resorted 
to  means  of  taxation.  In  1765  the  stamp  act  was  passed. 
By  this  act,  all  business  papers  and  certificates,  as  well  as 
newspapers,  required  a  stamp,  similar  to  that  already  used  in 
Great  Britain.  The  passage  of  this  act  roused  the  colonies  to 
resistance,  and  a  colonial  Congress  was  called,  which  met  on 
the  7th  of  October,  1765.  They  published  a  "  Declaration 
of  Eights  and  Liberties  "  l  on  the  19th  of  the  same  month, 


1  With  the  exception  of  a  few  lines  in  the  preamble,  here  follows  in  full 
the  Declaration  of  Rights  and  Liberties. 

The  members  of  this  Congress  esteem  it  our  indispensable  duty  to  make 
the  following  declaration  of  our  humble  opinion  respecting  the  most  essen- 
tial rights  and  liberties  of  the  colonists,  and  of  the  grievances  under  which 
they  labor  by  reason  of  several  late  acts  of  Parliament. 

I.  That  his  majesty's  subjects  in  these  colonies  owe  the  same  allegiance 
to  the  crown  of  Great  Britain  that  is  owing  from  his  subjects  born  within 
the  realm,  and  all  due  subordination  to  that  august  body,  the  Parliament 
of  Great  Britain. 

II.  That  his  majesty's  liege  subjects  in  these  colonies  are  entitled  to  all 
the  inherent  rights  and  liberties  of  his  natural  born  subjects  within  the 
kingdom  of  Great  Britain. 

III.  That  it  is  inseparably  essential  to  the  freedom  of  a  people,  and  the 
undoubted  right  of  Englishmen,  that  no  taxes  be  imposed  on  them  but  with 
their  own  consent,  given  personally  or  by  their  representatives. 

IV.  That  the  people  of  these  colonies  are  not,  and,  from  their  local 
circumstances,  cannot  be  represented  in  the  House  of  Commons  in  Great 
Britain. 

V.  That  the  only  representatives  of  the  people  of  these  colonies  are  per- 
sons chosen  therein  by  themselves,  and  that  no  taxes  ever  have  been  or  can 
be  constitutionally  imposed  on  them  but  by  their  respective  legislatures. 

VI.  That  all  supplies  to  the  crown  being  free  gifts  of  the  people,  it  is 
unreasonable  and  inconsistent  with  the  principles  and  spirit  of  the  British 
constitution  for  the  people  of  Great  Britain  to  grant  to  his  majesty  the 
property  of  the  colonists. 

VII.  That  trial  by  jury  is  the  inherent  and  invaluable  right  of  every 
British  subject  in  these  colonies. 

VIIL  That  the  late  act  of  Parliament  entitled  "  An  Act  for  granting  and 


84  OUTLINES    OP 

in  which  they  denied  the  right  of  Parliament  to  impose  taxes 
upon  the  colonies  without  their  own  consent,  given  person- 
ally or  by  their  representatives. 

XIII.  In  1766  the  stamp  act  was  repealed ;  but  in  the 
following  year  an  act  was  passed  by  Parliament  imposing  a 
duty  upon  tea  and  other  imports  into  the  colonies.     The  pas- 
sage of  this  act  led  to  still  more  determined  resistance  on  the 
part  of  the  colonies,  and  the  tea  sent  from   England  was 
thrown  overboard  by  an  enraged  populace  in  Boston,  and 
either  destroyed  or  sent  back  in  other  places. 

XIV.  To  enforce  the  commercial  rule  of  England,  her  fleet 
upon  the  American  coast  was  turned  into  a  revenue  squad- 
ron, and  a  standing  army  was  sent  out  to  enforce  obedience. 
Still  the  colonies  would  not  yield,  and  war  was  inevitable. 

applying  certain  stamp  duties  and  other  duties  in  the  British  colonies  and 
plantations  in  America,"  &c.,  by  imposing  taxes  on  the  inhabitants  of  these 
colonies,  and  the  said  act,  and  several  other  acts,  by  extending  the  juris- 
diction of  the  Courts  of  Admiralty  beyond  its  ancient  limits,  have  a  mani- 
fest tendency  to  subvert  the  rights  and  liberties  of  the  colonists. 

IX.  That  the  duties  imposed  by  several  late  acts  of  Parliament,  from 
the  peculiar  circumstances  of  these  colonies,  will  be  extremely  burden- 
some and  grievous,  and,  from  the  scarcity  of  specie,  the  payment  of  them 
absolutely  impracticable. 

X.  That  as  the  profits  of  the  trade  of  these  colonies  ultimately  centre 
in  Great  Britain,  to  pay  for  the  manufactures  which  they  are  obliged  to 
take  from  thence,  they  eventually  contribute  very  largely  to  all  supplies 
granted  there  to  the  crown. 

XI.  That  the  restrictions  imposed  by  several  late  acts  of  Parliament  on 
the  trade  of  these  colonies  will  render  them  unable  to  purchase  the  manu- 
factures of  Great  Britain. 

XII.  That  the  increase,  prosperity,  and  happiness    of  these  colonies 
depend  on  the  full  and  free  enjoyments  of  their  rights  and  liberties,  and  an 
intercourse  with  Great  Britain  mutually  affectionate  and  advantageous. 

XIII.  That  it  is  the  right  of  the  British  subjects  in  these  colonies  to 
petition  the  king  or  either  House  of  Parliament. 

Lastly.  That  it  is  the  indispensable  duty  of  these  colonies  to  the  best 
of  sovereigns,  to  the  mother  country^  and  to  themselves,  to  endeavor  by  a 
loyal  and  dutiful  address  to  his  majesty,  and  humble  applications  to  both 
Houses  of  Parliament,  to  procure  the  repeal  of  the  act  for  granting  and 
applying  certain  stamp  duties,  of  all  clauses  of  any  other  acts  of  Parlia- 
ment whereby  the  jurisdiction  of  the  admiralty  is  extended  as  aforesaid, 
and  of  tho  other  late  acts  for  the  restriction  of  American  commerce. 


ENGLISH   HISTORY.  85 

On  the  morning  of  the  19th  of  April,  1775,  a  force  of  eight 
hundred  English  troops  was  sent  from  Boston  to  Concord  to 
seize  some  military  stores.  A  battle  ensued  at  Lexington,  in 
which  the  English  lost,  during  their  retreat,  273  soldiers,  and 
the  Americans  lost  less  than  100.  The  battle  of  Bun- 
ker's Hill  followed  on  the  17th  of  June,  1775,  in  which  the 
Americans  were  compelled  to  retreat  for  want  of  ammu- 
nition, after  a  valiant  resistance,  in  which  the  advance  of  the 
enemy  was  twice  repelled.  The  Americans  lost  450  men  in 
killed  and  wounded,  and  the  English  more  than  twice  that 
number.  The  news  of  this  battle  spread  through  the  colonies, 
exciting  the  most  determined  resistance ;  and  on  the  4th  of 
July,  1776,  the  Continental  Congress  assembled  at  Phila- 
delphia deckred  the  colonies  to  be  "free  and  independent 
states." 

XV.  General  Washington  was  appointed  commander-in- 
chief  of  the  American  forces,  raised  and  to  be  raised,  and 
the  war  hi  Ameiica  was  prosecuted  with  great  vigor.  In 
1778  France  formed  a  treaty  with  America,  and  in  1779 
Spain  acknowledged  her  independence.  Thus  war  was 
provoked  by  these  two  powers,  and  in  1781  a  third  enemy 
was  found  in  the  Dutch.  During  this  latter  year  England 
was  carrying  on  at  one  time,  by  sea  and  land,  four  great 
contests ;  namely,  with  America,  France,  Spain,  and  Hol- 
land. In  America,  a  few  towns  only  on  the  seaboard  had 
been  taken,  but  the  interior  was  untenable,  if  not  uncon- 
querable. Thousands  of  troops,  hundreds  of  vessels,  millions 
of  treasure  had  all  been  lost,  and  still  the  Americans 
would  not  yield.  The  war  was  virtually  ended,  however, 
in  the  month  of  October,  1781,  by  the  surrender  of  York- 
town  by  Lord  Cornwallis  to  General  Washington ;  and  in 
1783  a  treaty  of  peace  was  made,  acknowledging  the  inde- 
pendence of  the  "United  States  of  America."  Peace  was 
also  made  with  France  and  Spain,  and  in  1784  with  Holland, 
and  also  between  the  East  India  Company  and  the  Rajah  of 
Mysore. 


86  OUTLINES    OF 

XVL  A  terrible  revolution  tooK.  place  in  France  in  the 
menorable  year  1789,  which,  although  it  did  not  directly 
affect  the  interests  of  the  British  throne,  was  destined  ulti- 
mately to  extend  an  unparalleled  influence  over  the  destinies 
of  Europe.  The  populace  rose,  destroyed  the  Bastile,  de- 
posed and  imprisoned  King  Louis  XVI.,  and  declared  France 
a  republic.  After  many  excesses,  during  which  the  European 
powers  stood  by  as  inactive  spectators,  the  French  Jacobins 
guillotined  the  king,  queen,  and  certain  members  of  the  royal 
family,  A.  D.  1793  ;  whereupon  a  great  confederacy  was 
established  between  England,  Spain,  Holland,  and  the  em- 
pires of  Germany  and  Russia,  to  restore  the  crown  of 
France.  Valenciennes  was  taken ;  Toulon  was  taken  and 
lost  again ;  many  French  settlements  in  the  "West  Indies 
were  captured,  (A.  D.  1794  ;)  the  Island  of  Corsica  was  sub- 
dued ;  and  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope,  and  Trincomalee,  in 
Ceylon,  were  added  to  the  possessions  of  Great  Britain. 

XVII.  And  now  the  most  extraordinary  man  of  modern 
history,  the  greatest  conqueror  of  any  age  since  Julius  Caesar, 
the  finest  soldier  that  ever  won  French  laurels,  began  to  dis- 
tinguish himself  against  the  Austrians,  (A.  D.  1795,)  and  to 
pave  the  way  for  the  magnificent  reputation  which,  as  Napo- 
leon the  Great,  he  afterwards  acquired.  Before  his  arms  the 
states  of  Germany  were  forced  to  sue  for  peace,  and  the 
English  viceroy  was  compelled  to  evacuate  Corsica.  The 
year  1797  saw  the  mutinies  of  Spithead  and  the  Nore,  the 
disgrace  of  which  was,  however,  compensated  by  the  splendid 
victories  of  Cape  St.  Vincent  and  Camperdown,  won  by  Ad- 
mirals Sir  John  Jervis  and  Duncan.  These  brave  command- 
ers were  each  rewarded  with  a  peerage. 

XVHI.  The  highly-merited  fame  of  these  two  great  victo- 
ries was,  nevertheless,  eclipsed  by  that  of  the  battle  of  the 
Nile,  (A.  D.  1798,)  in  which  Nelson  asserted  his  place  as  the 
first  naval  commander  of  that  day ;  cut  through  the  centre 
of  the  French  fleet ;  dispersed,  captured,  and  destroyed  thir- 
teen of  the  enemy's  ships  j  and  was  recompensed  with  the 


ENGLISH   HISTORYo  87 

title  of  Baron  Nelson  of  the  Nile,  and  a  pension  of  £3000 
per  annum.  In  the  mean  time,  Napoleon  Bonaparte  was 
rapidly  taking  the  lead  in  all  the  most  important  affairs  of 
the  French  Republic.  To  him  was  intrusted  the  command 
of  a  powerful  army  in  Egypt ;  but  finding  the  English  so 
victorious  upon  the  Nile,  he  hastened  back  to  Paris,  and  was 
created  first  consul  in  1799.  In  the  beginning  of  1800  he 
crossed  the  Alps  at  the  head  of  his  army,  and  by  the  brilliant 
victory  of  Marengo  (14th  June)  annihilated,  for  the  time,  the 
Austrian  power  in  Italy. 

XIX.  The  union  of  Great  Britain  with  Ireland  was  fixed 
by  an  act  of  Parliament,  passed  on  the  21st  of  April,  1800, 
to  commence  from  the  first  day  of  the  new  century,  (Janu- 
ary 1,  1801.)     The  Imperial  Parliament  of  the  United  King- 
dom was  summoned  to  meet  on  the  22d  of  the  same  month. 
This  measure  met  with  much  opposition  from  the  Irish. 

XX.  In  this  year,  (A.  D.  1801,)  Napoleon  succeeded  in 
fomenting  a  war  between  England  and  Denmark,  and  a  pow- 
erful  fleet,   under  Lord  Nelson   and   Sir  H.   Parker,  was 
accordingly  despatched  to  the  bombardment  of  Copenhagen. 
The   Danes  had  made  formidable  preparations,  and  fought 
valiantly  during  a  strife  of  four  hours,  when,  having  lost  all 
their  ships  of  the  line  and  their  floating  batteries,  they  were 
compelled  to  capitulate.     Shortly  after  this,  the  French  were 
routed  in  Egypt  by   Sir  Ralph  Abercrombie   and   Major 
General  Hutchinson,  where  the  battles  of  Aboukir  and  Alexan- 
dria were  won,  in  the  former  of  which  the  brave  Abercrombie 
met  his  death  wound. 

XXL  While  Great  Britain  was  thus  extending  her  tri- 
umphs abroad,  (A.  D.  1802,)  she  was  threatened  by  Napoleon 
with  an  invasion  at  home.  For  this  purpose  he  had  prepared 
a  flotilla  of  flat-bottomed  boats,  and  other  vessels,  for  the 
conveyance  of  his  troops.  Alarmed  by  these  movements 
on  the  part  of  the  enemy,  the  government  assembled  a 
squadron,  under  Lord  Nelson,  for  the  defence  of  the  coast. 
The  invasion  was  never  attempted;  a  treaty  was  entered 


OUTLINES    OP 

upon   by  the  English,  French,  Spanish,  and  Dutch  powers-, 
•  and  on  the  27th  of  March,  1802,  the  definite  treaty  of  peace 
•was   signed.     This  interval  was  destined  not  to  be  of  long 
duration,  and  war  was  again  proclaimed,  May  18,  1802. 

XXIL  Not  content  with  the  title  of  first  consul,  Napo- 
leon constituted  himself  Emperor  of  France  in  the  year 

1804,  and  was  crowned  King  of  Italy  in  1805.     In  conse- 
quence of  these  proceedings,  an  alliance  was   now  formed 
between  England,  Russia,  Austria,  and  Sweden.     But  Napo- 
leon was  victorious  at  Austerlitz,  where  he  signally  defeated 
the   Austrian  forces,  and  Russia  was  compelled  to  retreat. 
Fortunately,  the  share  borne   by  England  was   sufficiently 
victorious  to  counterbalance   these   disasters.     October  21, 

1805,  was  fought  the  famous  battle  of  Trafalgar,  in  which 
Lord  Nelson  defeated  the  united  fleets  of  France  and  Spain, 
and  expired  just  as  the  conquest  was  assured.     The  following 
year   (1806)  records   the   death   of  the   two  most  famous 
statesmen  of  that  epoch — namely,  William  Pitt  and  Charles 
James  Fox. 

XXTTT.  Napoleon  was  now  the  greatest  monarch  of  Eu- 
rope. Emperor  of  France,  King  of  Italy,  Protector  of 
Bavaria  and  Wirtemberg,  he  dominated  over  every  other 
government  excepting  those  of  England  and  Spain.  Two 
of  his  brothers  filled  the  thrones  of  Holland  and  Naples; 
Denmark  was  in  his  service ;  Prussia  at  his  mercy ;  Russia 
had  just  concluded  a  peace  which  was  entirely  to  his  advan- 
tage ;  and  Austria  enjoyed  but  the  shadow  of  a  power 
which  was  really  vested  in  his  hands.  Had  he  then  been 
prudent,  all  might  have  been  well ;  but  he  resolved  to  seize 
upon  Spain  likewise,  and  from  this  attempt  may  the  begin- 
ning of  his  ruin  be  dated. 

XXIV.  Having  taken  Ferdinand  of  Spain  prisoner  by 
an  ingenious  stratagem,  (A.  D.  1808,)  he  carried  that  mon- 
arch and  his  son  into  France,  and  proclaimed  his  brother 
Joseph  King  of  Spain.  A  general  insurrection  immediately 
broke  out  in  all  parts  of  Spain;  aid  was  implored  from 


ENGLISH   HISTORY.  89 

England ;  the  peasantry  formed  themselves  into  guerilla  par- 
ties, annoying  and  surprising  the  French  at  every  opportu- 
nity, cutting  off  their  supplies,  shooting  their  stragglers,  and 
skirmishing  with  their  outposts  j  except  where  the  army  was 
actually  present,  the  power  of  Napoleon  was  set  at  nought ; 
and,  to  crown  all,  an  army  of  ten  thousand  men  was  sent 
out,  commanded  by  Sir  Arthur  Wellesley,  better  known  at 
the  present  time  by  the  title  of  Duke  of  Wellington.  Thus 
commenced  the  famous  Peninsular  war,  and  the  first  engage- 
ment is  known  as  the  decisive  battle  of  Vimiera,  August  21, 
1808. 

XXV.  The  next  event  of  importance  was  the  victory  of 
Talavera,  (July  28,  1809,)  in  acknowledgment  of  which  Sir 
Arthur  Wellesley  received  the  title  of  Viscount  Wellington. 
Not  so  fortunate  was  the  memorable  and  ill-feted  expedition 
to  Walcheren,  in  which  nearly  fifty  thousand  fine  soldiers  fell 
inglorious  victims  to  the  unhealthy  climate  of  Zealand,  and 
the  disgraceful  inefficiency  of  those  placed  in  command.     In 
the  following  year,  (1810,)  Lord  Wellington  completely  drove 
the  French  troops  from  Portugal.     At  this  period,  a  succes- 
sion of  splendid  victories,  too  numerous  to  admit  of  notice  in 
so  brief  a  recapitulation  as  the  present,  every  where  attended 
the  career  of  Wellington. 

XXVI.  England  and  Russia  now  coalesced  against  France, 
(A.  D.  1812,)  and  the  emperor  resolved  upon  an  invasion  of 
Russia,  collected  an  army  of  six  hundred  thousand  men, 
forced  his  way  to  Borodino,  —  where,  after  a  sanguinary  battle 
of  three  successive  days,  the  Russians  were  defeated,  —  and 
pushed  on  immediately  for  Moscow.    The  Russians,  knowing 
no  other  means  by  which  to  deprive  the  French  of  winter 
quarters  and  provisions,  actually  set  fire  to  their  ancient  and 
beautiful  capital,  so  that,  on  then*  arrival,  the  conquerors  found 
nothing  but  desolation  and  flames.     Thus  disappointed  of 
resources,  they  began  a  hasty  retreat  to  France,  having  to 
traverse  an  enemy's  country  amid  all  the  horrors  of  a  north- 
ern winter,  and  being  utterly  destitute  of  all  provision,  except 

8 


30  OUTLINES    OF 

such  as  they  could  find  amid  the  deserted  villages  along  their 
route.  During  this  frightful  journey,  they  were  perpetually 
harassed  by  flying  bodies  of  Cossacks,  were  starved,  frozen, 
and  left  to  die  by  the  wayside.  No  less  than  three  hundred 
thousand  splendid  soldiers  thus  perished  miserably.  Seeing 
the  emperor's  present  weakness,  all  the  European  powers 
now  combined  to  crush  their  common  enemy.  One  by  one, 
his  conquests  were  wrested  from  him,  and  March  31,  1814, 
the  allied  armies  entered  Paris.  On  the  4th  of  April  fol- 
lowing, Napoleon  signed  his  abdication  at  Fontainebleau,  and 
Louis  XVIII.  was  recalled  to  the  throne  of  his  ancestors. 

XXVII.  Some  unfortunate  disputes  between  the  govern- 
ment of  Great  Britain  and  the  United  States  led  to  a  decla- 
ration of  war  by  the  United  States,  June  19,  A.  IX  1812. 
The  Americans  unsuccessfully  invaded  Canada ;  but  at  sea 
their  frigates  obtained  many  signal  triumphs  over  British  ves- 
sels. The  war  was,  however,  of  short  duration,  and  peace  was 
concluded  between  the  two  nations  in  1814.  The  same  year, 
while  the  ambassadors  were  assembled  at  Vienna  to  adjust 
the  claims  of  Europe,  the  world  was  struck  with  surprise,  ter- 
ror, and  admiration,  by  the  report  that  Napoleon  had  escaped 
from  his  exile  at  Elba,  and,  having  landed  in  France,  was  once 
again  at  the  head  of  his  beloved  army.  Again  he  ascended 
the  imperial  throne ;  again  the  allied  sovereigns  assembled 
their  forces;  and  again  they  met,  for  the  last  time,  upon  the 
field  of  Waterloo,  near  Brussels.  Here,  on  the  18th  of  June, 
was  fought  the  ever-memorable  battle  of  Waterloo,  in  which  the 
French  army  was  irrevocably  routed,  and  fled  from  the  field 
in  the  utmost  confusion.  All  was  now  over  with  Napoleon. 
He  surrendered  himself  to  the  mercy  of  England ;  but  in- 
stead of  being  received  as  a  fallen  hero,  he  was  sent  a  pris- 
oner to  the  far  and  lonely  Island  of  St.  Helena,  where,  after 
lingering  through  a  few  melancholy  years,  he  died  on  the 
5th  of  May,  1821.  The  expenses  of  England  during  the 
prosecution  of  this  war  are  said  to  have  exceeded  seventy 
millions. 

XXVm.  The  year  1820  proved  fatal  to  the  Duke  of 


ENGLISH    HISTORY. 


91 


Kent,  father  to  Queen  Victoria ;  and  in  less  than  a  week  after 
the  death  of  this  prince,  England  lost,  in  George  III.,  one  of 
her  most  respected  sovereigns.  This  venerable  monarch 
expired  on  the  29th  January,  1820,  in  the  eighty-second  year 
of  his  age,  and  the  sixtieth  of  his  reign,  which  is  the  longest 
and  most  remarkable  in  the  annals  of  English  history. 


QUESTIONS  TO  CHAPTER  IX. 


I.  By  whom  was  Queen  Anne 
succeeded  ?      How     old      was 
George  I.,  and  what  character 
preceded  him  ?    What  noblemen 
experienced     his    resentment  ? 
How  were  Ormond  and  Boling- 
broke  punished  ? 

II.  What   proceedings   were 
now  taken  by  the  Pretender,  and 
by  whom    was    he    supported? 
What  generals  quelled  the  in- 
surrections?   What  became  of 
the  various  insurgents  ? 

III.  Describe  the  nature  and 
origin  of  that  speculation  called 

he  South  Sea  bubble.     How  did 
he  South  Sea  Company  raise 

money  from  public    credulity? 

When  the  bubble  burst,  what 

was  found  to  be  the  value  of  the 

directors'  estates  ? 

IV.  Relate  the  manner  of  the 
king's  death. 

V.  By  whom  was  George  I. 
succeeded  ?    What  was  the  na- 
ture   of   the    misunderstanding 
with  Spain  ?    In  what  year  was 
Admiral     Vernon      sent    out? 
What  successes  were   achieved 
by  him  and  Commodore  Anson  ? 

VI.  On  what  occasion  did  the 
French  interfere  with  the  Aus- 
trian succession  ?    What  injus- 
tice   did  they   commit  towards 
Maria  Theresa?    What    coun- 


tries joined  with  England  to  as- 

of  ju 
what  was  the  result  ? 


sist 


JOl 

the 


cause  of  justice,   and 


VII.   In  what    year  did  the 
French    declare     war?    What 


great  battle  took  place  on  the 
banks  of  the  Mayne  ?  What 
was  Prince  Charles  Edward 
about  in  the  mean  time  ?  What 
cities  did  he  seize  in  Scotland  ? 
By  whom  was  he  pursued? 
When  was  the  battle  of  Cullo- 
den  fought  ?  What  was  the  re- 
sult ?  What  was  the  fate  of  the 
young  Pretender  ? 

VIII.  In  what  year  was  con- 
cluded the  peace  of  Aix-la-Cha- 
pelle  ?    In  what  colonies  did  the 
French  and  English  continue  at 
war  ?    What  were  the  English 
conquests  abroad,  and  when  did 
General  Wolfe  fall  ? 

IX.  What   terrible    revenge 
was  taken  by  Clive  in  the  East 
Indies?    What  were  his    con- 
quests there  ? 

X.  When  did  George  II.  die, 
and  by  whom  was  he  succeeded  ? 

XI.  What  was  the  first  re- 
markable event  in  this  reign  ? 
What   were    the    successes    of 
seven   years  ?     When  was    the 
stamp    act      imposed    on    the 
American  colonies,  and  how  was 
it  received  ? 

XII.  What  led  to  the  war  be- 
tween England   and  America? 
When  was  the  stamp  act  passed  ? 
When  did  the  colonial  Congress 
assemble  ?      What      important 
measure  did  they  adopt : 

XIII.  What  act  followed  the 
repeal  of  the  stamp  act  ?   What 
was  done  with  the  tea  imported 
from    England?      What    great 


92 


OUTLINES    OP 


wars  did  England  carry  on  in 
consequence?  What  was  the 
virtual  ending  of  the  American 
war? 

XIV.  What    measures   were 
taken    by  England   to    enforce 
obedience  ?     When  was  the  first 
battle    fought?      What    battle 
soon  followed?    When  did  the 
American    Congress    proclaim 
their  independence  ? 

XV.  Who      was     appointed 
commander-in-chief       of       the 
American    army?     When    did 
France    declare    in    favor    of 
America  ?    When  did  Spain  ac- 
knowledge their  independence  ? 
What    treaties    of   peace  were 
made  in  the  year  1783?   In  1784? 

XVI.  What   dreadful    event 
occurred    in    France   in   1789  ? 
What  were  the  proceedings  of 
the   French   revolutionists,  and 
into   what   confederacy  did  the 
European  powers  enter  in  1793  ? 

XVII.  What    extraordinary- 
man    now   began   to  make  his 
name  known  in  Europe  ?   What 
were   his  successes?     What  fa- 
mous mutinies  occurred  in  1797, 
and  what  splendid  victories  at 
sea? 

XVIII.  In  what  year  did  Nel- 
son win  the  battle  of  the  Nile  ? 
Relate  the  circumstances  of  the 
engagement.    How  was  the  gal- 
lant  admiral  rewarded?     What 
were  the  proceedings  of  Napo- 
leon at  this  juncture  ?     In  what 
year  was  he  created  first  consul  ? 
When  did  he  cross  the  Alps,  and 
what  great  victory  followed  ? 

XIX..  Relate  the  particulars 
of  the  Union. 

XX.  In  what  year  was  Co- 
penhagen bombarded,  and  with 
what  success?  By  whom  were 
the  French  defeated  in  Egypt, 
and  what  general  there  met  his 
death  ? 


XXI.  In  what  year  did  Napo- 
leon project  an  invasion  of  Eng- 
land ?     What  steps  were  taken 
to  prevent  it  ?    When  was  peace 
concluded,  and  how  long  did  it 
last  ? 

XXII.  What  royal  titles  were 
next  assumed  by  Napoleon,  and 
in  what  great  battle  did  he  de- 
feat the  Austrians  ?     When  was 
the  battle  of  Trafalgar  fought  ? 
What  was  the  fate  of  Nelson  ? 
What    statesmen    died   in    the 
year  1806  ? 

XXIII.  What  was  the  posi- 
tion of  Napoleon  at  this  time  ? 
From  what  point  may  his  ruin 
be  dated  ? 

XXIV.  What  steps   did  he 
take  to  put  his  brother  on  the 
throne  of  Spain?    With  what 
resistance  did  he  .meet  ?    Name 
the  first  battle  of  the  great  Pen- 
insular war. 

XXV.  For  what  victory  was 
Wellesley     promoted  ?      What 
were  the  losses  at  Walcheren  ? 
In  what    year  did  Wellington 
drive    the    French    from   Por- 
tugal ? 

XXVI.  Relate    the  particu- 
lars of  Napoleon's  expedition  to 
Russia    in    1812.     How    many 
men  did  he  take  out,  and  how 
many   perished  in  the  retreat  ? 
What  powers  now  combined  to 
crush  the  emperor,   and  what 
snccess  had  they  ? 

XXVII.  In  what   year    did 
Napoleon   escape    from    Elba  ? 
When  was  fought  the  battle  of 
Waterloo,  and  with  what  result  ? 
What  was    the    end   of   Napo- 
leon ? 

XXVIII.  When      did     the 
Duke  of  K  ent  die  ?    What  rela- 
tion was  he  to  Queen  Victoria  ? 
When  did  George  III.  die,  and 
at  what  age  ?    How  long  had  he 
reigned  ? 


ENGLISH    HISTORY.  93 


CHAPTER    X. 

THE  HOUSE  OF  BRUNSWICK,  (CONTINUED.) 

Began  to  reign.  Died. 

GEORGE  IV A.  D.  1820 A.  D.  18.30. 

WILLIAM  IV "     1830 1837. 

VICTORIA  I "     1837 reigning. 

GEORGE  IV. 

BEGAN  TO  REIGN  A.  D.    1820.      DIED    1830. 

I.  GEORGE  IV.,  fourth  sovereign  of  the  House  of  Bruns- 
wick, succeeded  to  the  throne.     As  prince  regent,  during  the 
last  ten  years  of  his  father's  life,  when  mental  and  bodily 
infirmity  had  rendered  that  aged  monarch  incapable  of  gov- 
erning, George  IV.  had  virtually  been  king  of  England  long 
before  he  wore  the  crown.     He  was  a  man  of  polished  and 
fascinating  manners,  but  heartless  as  Charles  I.,  and  profligate 
as  Charles  IL     The  first  act  of  his  reign  was  to  exclude  his 
wife's  name  l  from  the  liturgy  of  the  church,  and  to  seek  a 
divorce  by  means  of  accusations   against  her,  which,  even 
though  they  might  be  only  too  true,  should  never  have  met 
the  public  ear.     She  came  over  to  England,  where  her  cause 
was  espoused  by  the  populace,  and  took  up  her  residence  at 
Hammersmith.     Although  the  ministers  declined  to  proceed 
for  a  bill  of  divorce,  it  was  decided  by  law  that  she  could  not 
claim  the  honors  of  coronation,  to  which,  as  queen  consort, 
she  enjoyed  a  prescriptive,  but  not  a  judicial  right.     Being, 
however,  ill  advised  by  her  supporters,  she  presented  herself 
at  the  doors  of  Westminster  Abbey,  July  19,  1821,  just  as 
the  ceremony  was   about  to  commence.     Her  demand  for 
admission  was  refused,  and  after  a  lengthened  and  undignified 
altercation,  she  retired,  only  to  die  within  a  few  days,  of 
shame,  mortification,  and  a  broken  heart. 

II.  In  the    year     1822,   disease,   famine,   and    rebellion 
spread  through  Ireland.     O'Connell  made  himself  conspic- 

1  Caroline  of  Brunswick. 

8* 


94  OUTLINES    OP 

uous  among  the  disaffected ;  the  cry  for  Catholic  emancipa- 
tion rose  alike  from  all  quarters,  from  Brow  Head  in  Cork 
to  Fair  Head  in  Antrim  ;  and  a  grant  of  £300,000  was  sent 
over  from  England  to  the  relief  of  the  distressed  peasantry. 

HI.  The  prevailing  liberality  of  opinion  having  extended 
to  the  shores  of  Greece,  that  oppressed  nation  now  made  a 
desperate  effort  to  throw  off  the  yoke  of  Turkey.  In  the 
year  1824,  Lord  Byron,  accompanied  by  several  Englishmen 
of  talent  and  position,  went  over  to  their  assistance ;  but  the 
noble  poet  was  not  destined  to  witness  the  success  of  the 
great  enterprise  which  he  had  embraced.  He  died  at  Mis- 
solonghi,  on  the  19th  April,  1824.  The  following  year  was 
remarkable  for  a  great  panic  in  the  money  market,  and  for 
the  failure  of  many  banking  houses,  joint  stock  companies, 
&c.  By  engaging  in  such  ill-judged  speculations,  many  thou- 
sands were  ruined,  and  the  national  misery  that  ensued  was 
without  a  parallel  since  the  bursting  of  the  South  Sea  bubble. 

IV.  The  struggle  between  Greece  and  Turkey  had  now,  by 
its  long  continuance,  attracted  the  attention  of  Europe,  and 
determined  the  leading  powers  to  interfere  for  the  protection 
and  liberation  of  the  former.     The  combined  fleets  of  Eng^ 
land,  France,  and  Russia  sailed,  accordingly,  into  the  port  of 
Navarino,  October  20,  1827 ;  blew  up,  captured,  and  almost 
annihilated  the  Turkish  navy,  under  Ibrahim  Pacha ;  and  con- 
firmed the  independence  of  the  nation  which  they  came  to 
deliver. 

V.  It  became  daily  more  and  more  evident  that  Ireland 
would  never  be  otherwise  than  disaffected  and  unsettled,  so 
long  as  the  law  excluded  Roman  Catholics  from  the  just 
privileges  of  the  king's  subjects.     At  this  period,  to  believe 
in  transubstantiation  and  the  infallibility  of  the  pope,  was  to 
be  excluded  from  Parliament,  to  be  denied  the  possession  of 
arms,  to  be  ineligible  for  all  corporate  offices,  such  as  that  of 
mayor,  sheriff,  &c. ;  and,  in  short,  to  be  subject  to  such  a 
host  of  indignities  as  even,  at  this  brief  distance  of  time,  we 
leel  almost  difficult  of  belief.     In  the  month  of  February 


ENGLISH    HISTORY.  95 

1829,  this  important  question  was  brought  before  the  House 
of  Commons,  and,  in  the  month  of  April,  was  carried  by  a 
large  majority  in  the  House  of  Lords,  when  it  became  a  law, 
known  as  the  Roman  Catholic  emancipation  act.  All  sub- 
jects of  Great  Britain  were  henceforth  equals  throughout 
the  country. 

VL  In  the  early  part  of  1830,  the  king's  health  began  to 
decline,  and,  after  a  lingering  illness  of  some  months,  he 
expired  at  Windsor  on  the  20th  of  June. 

WILLIAM  IV. 

BEGAN  TO  REIGN  A.   D.    1830.      DIED  1837. 

VII.  King  WILLIAM  IV.,  late  Duke  of  Clarence,  and 
brother  to  George  IV.,  now  succeeded  to  the  crown.     The 
year  1832  is  famous  for  the  great  reform  of  Parliament,  car- 
ried by  the  king  and  the  Commons  against  the  strenuous 
opposition  of  the  Lords.     Thereby  Parliament  was  put  upon 
a  basis  of  security,  in  accordance  with  the  public  wish ;  many 
evils  were  swept  away,  and  a  valuable  power  of  further  re- 
form was  vested  in  the  nation.     The  franchise  was  removed 
from  barely-populated  to   thickly-inhabited  towns,  and  bri- 
bery at  elections  was  made  punishable. 

VIII.  The  year  1834  was  signalized  by  the  act  by  which 
slavery  was  abolished  throughout  the  colonies.     The  sum  of 
£20,000,000  sterling  was  granted  by  Parliament  for  compen- 
sation to  the  masters  of  the  liberated  slaves ;  and  on  August 
1,  1834,  no  less  than  770,280  became  free  men  —  a  number 
equal  to  one  third  of  the  population  of  London. 

IX.  In   1837  the  health  of  William  IV.  was  observed  to 
fail  rapidly,  and  on  the  20th  of  June  he  died,  much  regretted, 
after  a  brief  and  prosperous  reign,  during  which  he  had  aided 
to  advance  the  liberties  of  his  people,  and  succeeded  in  at- 
taching to  his  memory  the  respect  of  posterity. 


96  OUTLINES    OF 

VICTORIA  I. 

BEGAN  TO  REIGN  A.  D.    1837. 

X.  In  the  nineteenth  year  of  her  age,  when  England 
was'  at  peace  with  the  world,  when  the  legislative  meas- 
ures of  the  preceding  reigns  had  ceased  to  provoke  hos- 
tilities, and  already  begun  to  manifest  their  beneficial  results, 
Queen  VICTORIA  I.  ascended  the  throne,  and  her  uncle,  the 
Duke  of  Cumberland,  immediately  departed  to  take  pos- 
session of  the  kingdom  of  Hanover,  now  severed  from  the 
British  empire  by  the  operation  of  the  Salic  law,  which  ex- 
cludes females  from  the  crown.  Lower  Canada  was  at  this 
time  in  a  state  of  actual  revolt ;  but  the  rebels,  being  de- 
feated, fled  to  the  United  States,  (Jan.,  1838,)  and  the  British 
Parliament  united  the  two  provinces  of  Upper  and  Lower 
Canada,  thereby  restoring  tranquillity  and  abolishing  party 
spirit.  In  this  year  the  queen's  coronation  took  place ;  the 
great  Affghanistan  war  commenced  in  the  East  Indian  terri- 
tories, and  war  with  China  was  declared. 

XL  A  society  called  Chartism  was  formed  in  the  year 
1839,  chiefly  among  the  working  classes,  for  the  furtherance 
of  a  scheme  of  universal  suffrage,  which  they  imagined  was 
to  redress  all  their  grievances,  and  which  they  proceeded  to 
enforce  by  assembling  in  different  parts  of  the  country,  with 
guns,  pikes,  and  other  weapons.  On  the  4th  of  Novem- 
ber of  this  year  they  met,  to  the  number  of  ten  thousand, 
and,  headed  by  one  Frost,  made  an  attack  upon  Newport, 
but  were  defeated  and  put  to  flight  by  a  detachment  of  the 
forty-fifth  regiment,  stationed  in  that  town.  Three  of  the 
leaders  were  seized  and  condemned  to  death ;  but  the  sen- 
tence was  subsequently  commuted  to  transportation  for  life. 
In  the  early  part  of  the  following  year,  (1840,)  her  majesty 
was  married  to  Prince  Albert  of  Saxe-Coburg-Gotha.  An 
expedition  sent  out  to  China  reduced  that  country  to  submis- 
sion. Canton  was  occupied  by  English  forces,  and  the  em- 
peror was  compelled  to  pay  six  millions  of  dollars  for  the 
expenses  of  the  war,  before  the  city  was  restored  to  him. 


ENGLISH   HISTORY.  97 

XIL  In  the  mean  time,  the  Anglo-Indian  army  achieved 
some  success  at  Candabar  and  Cabul,  but,  in  the  year  1842, 
met  with  serious  reverses.  An  insurrection  broke  out  at  Ca- 
bul, the  British  envoy  was  assassinated,  their  army  almost  cut 
to  pieces,  and  the  melancholy  remnant  obliged  to  retreat 
before  the  enemy.  Lord  Ellenborough  was  then  sent  out  as 
Governor  General ;  two  armies  were  despatched  against  the 
Affghan  forces ;  the  fortifications  of  Cabul  were  destroyed, 
the  Affghans  conquered,  and  the  national  honor  retrieved. 
China  having  broken  faith  with  England,  a  small  fleet,  com- 
manded by  Admiral  Parker,  won  a  series  of  brilliant  victo- 
ries, took  seven  of  their  great  commercial  cities,  exacted  a 
compensatory  tribute  of  21,000,000  dollars,  and  took  perma- 
nent possession  of  the  valuable  Isknd  of  Hong  Kong. 

XIII.  In  the  year  1844  began  a  brief  but  sanguinary  war- 
fare between  the  government  and  the  Sikh  tribes  of  India. 
Five  great  battles  were  fought,  many  thousands  of  lives  were 
sacrificed,  and  the  victories  were  purchased  by  sad  losses. 
Peace  was  concluded  with  the   Sikhs  in   February,  1846. 
Just  one  year  previously  (1845)  the  corn  laws  were  repealed, 
and  the  people  received  the  blessing  of  cheap  bread. 

XIV.  It  need  scarcely  be  said  that  the  year  1 85 1  is  fa- 
mous for  the  peace  of  all  nations,  and  for  the  opening  of  the 
Industrial  Exhibition  called  the  Crystal  Palace,  in  Hyde  Park. 
This  superb  building  consisted  entirely  of  glass  and  iron,  cov- 
ered nineteen  acres  of  ground,  contained  one  million  square 
feet  of  flooring,  and  was  erected  at  a  cost  of  £79,800.     The 
roof  alone  comprised  seventeen  acres  of  glass,  and  more  than 
four  thousand  tons  of  iron  were  used  in  the  structure.     Here 
were  assembled  the  wealth,  ingenuity,  and  industry  of  the 
world,  from  the  rude  implements  of  warfare  wielded  by  the 
native  of  the  Pacific  Islands  to  the  thrice  refined  luxuries  of 
European   civilization.     Here  might  be   seen  at   one  time 
travellers  from  the  most  opposite  hemispheres,  who,  with  the 
people  of  England,  were  alike  employed  in  the  study  of  the 
useful  and  the  beautiful.     Towards  the  close  of  the  year  the 


98  OUTLINES    OF 

materials  of  this  building  were  sold  for  £70,000  to  the  new 
Crystal  Palace  Company,  by  whom  the  present  gigantic  exhi- 
bition was  erected  at  Sydenham,  in  Surrey.  It  is  designed 
as  a  place  of  permanent  recreation  for  the  citizens  of  Lon- 
don, and  not  only  far  exceeds  the  former  palace  in  size  and 
beauty,  but  is  surrounded  by  gardens  and  promenades,  and 
contains  the  finest  fountains  in  England.  In  this  year,  also, 
the  communication  by  means  of  electric  telegraph  was  per- 
fected between  England  and  France. 

XV.  On  the  14th  September,  1852,  died  suddenly,  at  Wal- 
mer  Castle,  Arthur,  Duke  of  Wellington,  the  great  general 
who  never  was  defeated  in  a  battle,  and  whose  memory  is 
forever  famous  as  the  conqueror  of  Napoleon.     He  was  buried 
with  great  pomp  in  St.  Paul's  Cathedral,  November  18,  1852. 

XVI.  The  year  1854  is  among  the  most  memorable  which 
we  have   had  to  record  since  the  conquest  of  England  by 
the  Romans.     For  nearly  twenty  years  England  had  been 
at  peace  with  Europe.     The  heroes  of  the  Peninsula  belonged 
to  a  fast-ebbing  generation,  and  such  as  yet  survived  were  old 
men,  decorated  by  honorable  medals.     Corn  had  been  reaped 
upon  the  field  of  Waterloo ;  Napoleon  and  Wellington  were 
both  gone,  and  their  ashes  rested  in  Paris  and  in  London. 
All  was   long  past,  and  "  on   earth  peace   and  good  will 
towards  men  "  seemed  to  have  become  an  abiding  blessing. 
But  in  the  midst  of  tranquillity  came  injustice  and  strife. 
The  Emperor  Nicholas  of  Russia,  whose  territories  are  equal 
in  size  to  all  the  rest  of  Europe  put  together,  claimed  power 
over  two  thirds  of  the  population  of  Turkey,  under  the  pre- 
text that  all  Greeks  were  of  the  same  religion  as  himself, 
and  that  therefore  all  Greeks  born  in  the  sultan's  domin- 
ions should  acknowledge  him  as  their  protector  and  the  head 
of  their  church.     In  the  mean  time  he  seized  on  Moldavia 
and  Wallachia  as   hostages  for  the  sultan's  consent  —  two 
provinces  which,  together,  comprise  a  larger  extent  of  coun- 
try than  England  and  Wales,  and  which  contain  about  one 
million  four  hundred  and  fifty  thousand  souls.     To  this  de- 


ENGLISH   HISTORY.  99 

mand  the  sultan  sent  a  spirited  defiance,  and  after  three  or 
four  brilliant  actions,  Omar  Pacha,  the  Turkish  general,  suc- 
ceeded in  driving  the  Russians  back  from  Wallachia  and  Mol- 
davia. England  and  France  now  thought  it  time  to  inter- 
fere, and  being  roused  to  just  indignation  by  the  affair  of 
Sinope,  in  which  five  thousand  Turks,  resolved  to  dispute 
the  aggressions  of  Nicholas,  were  massacred  by  a  Russian 
fleet,  war  was  declared  towards  the  end  of  March,  1854. 
England  and  France  allied  their  fleets  and  armies  in  the  cause, 
and  from  England  to  Malta,  from  Malta  to  Gallipoli,  the 
English  sent  ships  and  soldiers  to  the  relief  of  the  Ottoman 
empire. 

XVII.  The  first  blow  of  the  late  war  was  struck  in  the 
Black  Sea,  March  22,  1854.     Admirals  Dundas  and  Hame- 
lin  approached  Odessa,  a  great  commercial  port  of  the  Eux- 
ine,  and  upon  the  refusal  of  the  governor  to  give  up  all  ships 
lying  in  the  harbor,  a  vigorous  bombardment  from  both 
fleets  ensued.     After  a  time  two  powder  magazines  exploded, 
the  fortifications  were  destroyed,  thirteen  ships  kden  with 
munitions  of  war  were  captured,  and  the  allies  drew  off  in 
triumph,  with  a  loss  of  only  five  men. 

XVIII.  The  armies  now  encamped  at  Varna  and  in  the 
unhealthy  valleys  adjacent,  where  the  cholera  broke  out  and 
committed    fearful    ravages    among  the  brave  men.    The 
English  army  alone  lost  between  seven  hundred  and  eight 
hundred.     In  the  mean  time  the  Russian  forces  had  laid 
siege  to   Silistria,   a  garrison  manned  by   eight  thousand 
Turks,  and  situated  on  the  south  bank  of  the  Danube.     For 
more  than  two  months  the  soldiers  of  the  Emperor  Nicholas 
lay  behind  their  earthworks  in  front  of  this  fortress,  mining, 
cannonading,   and   assaulting  the  defenders,   and   still  were 
constantly  repulsed.     At  length,  on  the  28th  June,  a  last  and 
grand  assault  was  led  up  by  Prince  Paskiewitch,  Count  Orlof£ 
and  General  Gortschakoffi,    The  Turks  triumphantly  repulsed 
them.     Orloff  was  killed  ;  the  other  leaders  seriously  wound- 
ed j  the  troops  fled  in  confusion  across  the  river,  and  the 


100  OUTLINES    OF 

siege  was  raised.     More  than  thirty  thousand  Russians  per- 
ished in  this  enterprise. 

XIX.  The  allies  next  determined  on  an  invasion  of  the 
Crimea,  a  peninsula  which  was  the  very  stronghold  of  the 
Russian  power  hi  the  Black  Sea,  and  defended  by  the  strong- 
est and  most  richly  stored  arsenal  in  the  world.     On  the 
7th  September,   1854,  the  great  fleet,  nearly  four  hundred 
vessels,  set  sail  from  Varna,  and  on  the  14th  instant  the  army 
was  landed  about  eight  miles  from  Eupatoria.     On  the  20th 
the   allies   attacked   the   enemy,   then   drawn  up  in  great 
strength  among  their  batteries  and  entrenchments  along  the 
steep  banks  of  the  little  River  Alma.     The  Russians  num- 
bered fifty-four  thousand  men,  the  allies  about  fifty  thousand. 
The  French  commenced  the  attack,  and  being  followed  up 
by  the  English,  drove  the  Russians  from  their  admirable  po- 
sition, pursued  them  down  the  hill,  and   after  a  contest  of 
only  three  hours,  achieved  one  of  the  noblest  victories  in  the 
annals  of  Britain's  wars.     The  allies  lost  six  hundred  and 
nine   men,  and  twenty-six   hundred    and  ninety-nine  were 
wounded.    The  Russian  loss  was   stated  to  be  seventeen 
hundred  and  sixty-two  killed  and  twenty-seven  hundred  and 
twenty  wounded ;  but  it  is  likely  that  their  disasters  were 
more  serious  stilL     On  the  23d  the  allies  marched  southwards, 
and  on  Monday  the  25th  arrived  before  the  fishing  port  of 
Balaklava,  which,  after  a  faint  show  of  resistance,  surrendered 
unconditionally.     The  brave  little  garrison  were  sent  as  pris- 
oners to  Constantinople,  and  the  army  took  up  its  quarters 
in  the  deserted  lanes  and  hovels  of  the  town. 

XX.  From  this  time  the   engineers   and  soldiers  were 
actively  employed  in  making  intrenchments  and  earthworks 
before  Sebastopol.     Here  they  mounted  guns,  and  every  day 
crept  nearer  and  nearer  the  forts  of  the  enemy.     Continual 
efforts  to  harass  the  working  parties  in  the  trenches,  to  sur- 
prise them  in  then*  lines  at  night,  to  pour  out  suddenly  by 
day,  and  to  bombard  them  fiercely  from  their  innumerable  forts, 
were  made  by  the  Russians,  and  still  the  allies  kept  building 


ENGLISH   HISTORY.  101 

up  their  batteries,  till  they  got  near  enough  to  fire  upon 
them  in  their  turn.  On  the  17th  October  the  guns  of  the 
allied  army  opened  on  Sebas+opol,  and  the  siege  began. 

XXL  The  Russians,  who  had  several  times  made  their 
appearance  as  if  to  offer  battle,  and  as  frequently  retreated, 
at  length  came  out  in  great  force,  (October  25,  1854,)  and 
drove  the  Turks,  like  sheep,  from  their  batteries  round  the 
valley  of  Balaklava.  The  English  were  immediately  apprised 
of  this  imminent  danger ;  the  Highlanders  repulsed  the  mount- 
ed Russians  with  astonishing  coolness  and  skill ;  the  English 
dragoons  met  theirs  at  full  gallop,  and  after  a  desperate  hand- 
to-hand  conflict,  put  them  utterly  to  flight ;  the  English  light 
brigade,  by  a  fatal  mistake  of  the  order  given,  was  cut  to 
pieces  while  performing  incredible  feats  of  valor,  and  amid  glo- 
ry, and  carnage,  and  defeat,  —  which  could  scarcely  be  called 
defeat  when  so  bravely  contested,  —  this  battle  of  Balaklava 
ended.  The  Russians  had  gained  the  advantage.  They  had 
dismantled  the  forts,  nearly  destroyed  their  light  cavalry, 
and  gained  the  main  road  from  Balaklava  to  Sebastopol. 
The  allies  had  lost  ten  officers,  and  one  hundred  and  forty- 
seven  men.  Still  the  name  of  Balaklava  is  as  glorious  aa 
that  of  many  victories. 

XXII.  It  was  about  this  time  that  Miss  Nightingale,  the 
heroine  of  the  war,  set  sail  from  England,  accompanied  by 
a  body  of  nurses,  for  the  humane  object  of  attending  to  the 
suffering  soldiers.  Immense  assistance  of  clothes,  wine,  and 
other  necessaries  was  sent  out  by  the  Times1  fund,  and  a 
considerable  improvement  in  the  hospital,  laundry,  and  med- 
ical departments  followed. 

XXUL  The  morning  of  the  5th  of  November  was  gray 
and  drizzly,  when  the  Russians  attacked  the  position  of  the 
besiegers  near  the  bridge  of  the  Tchernaya  at  Inkermann. 
Crossing  the  bridge  unseen,  they  advanced  in  enormous 
bodies  upon  the  advanced  pickets,  which  were  forced  slowly 
to  retreat.  The  firing  aroused  the  other  divisions  of  the 
army  from  sleep  ;  but  before  they  could  arrive,  the  Rmssians 
9 


102  OUTLINES    OP 

had  once  seized,  once  been  expelled,  and  once  more  forced 
the  works,  pursuing  the  brave  soldiers  towards  their  camp. 
By  this  time  the  generals  had  reached  the  scene  ;  the  Guards, 
the  infantry  regiments,  and  the  sixty  thousand  Russians  were 
soon  fighting  desperately  in  innumerable  groups,  as  if  twenty 
battles  were  going  on  at  once ;  for  long  hours  the  frightful 
contest  lasted,  and  the  English  heroes  were  gradually  giving 
ground  to  the  foe,  when  the  French,  who  had  been  drawn 
off  to  the  defence  of  Balaklava,  came  up  at  full  speed.  Eng- 
lish and  French  together  charged  upon  the  enemy,  and  at 
the  point  of  the  bayonet,  drove  them  down  the  hill.  The 
French  batteries  opened  an  irresistible  fire  on  the  retreat- 
ing masses,  and  the  battle  of  Inkermann,  after  a  strug- 
gle of  twelve  hours,  was  won.  Eight  thousand  English  and 
six  thousand  French  had  defeated  fifty  thousand  Russians, 
with  a  loss  of  four  hundred  and  sixty-two  killed  and  nine- 
teen hundred  and  fifty-two  wounded. 

XXIV.  On  the  2d  March,  1855,  died  Nicholas,  Emperor 
of  all  the  Russias.     This  great  event  made  no  change,  how- 
over,  in  the  affairs  of  the  war,  which  his  son  and  successor 
pledged  himself  to  continue.    About  this  time  an  electric 
telegraph  was  established  at  the  Crimea,  as  well  as  a  railway 
for  the  conveyance   of  stores,  &c.,  from  Balaklava  to  the 
camp.     Reinforcements,  too,  were  forwarded  to  the  seat  of 
war,  and  before  May  had  arrived,  the  sickness  had  disap- 
peared, the  men  were  well  provided  with  necessaries,  and 
not  less  than  one  hundred  and  fifty  thousand  of  the  best 
soldiers  in  the  world  were  again  bombarding  Sebastopol. 

XXV.  On  the  18th  of  June,  after  many  varying  sorties 
and  assaults,  the  French  and  English  generals  determined  on 
an  attack  of  the  Malakhoff  and  Redan  towers  —  an  enterprise 
which  disastrously  failed,  and  ended  with  a  loss  of  more 
than  five  hundred  killed  and  two  thousand  wounded.     On 
the  28th  inst,  Lord  Raglan,  after  some  days  of  illness,  died, 
universally  regretted  throughout  the  army,  and  was  succeed- 
ed in  his  command  by  General  Simpson. 


ENGLISH    HISTORY.  103 

XXVI.  The  English  works  approached  nearer  every  day 
to  the   walls   of    Sebastopol.     Fifteen  thousand  well-disci- 
plined soldiers  from  the  little  kingdom  of  Sardinia  arrived 
to  the  assistance  of  the  allies,  under  the  command  of  Gen- 
eral  de  la  Marmora,  and  were  encamped  with  the  English 
cavalry  in  the  valley  of  the  Tchernaya.     Here,  on  the   16th 
of  August,  they  were  attacked  by  the  enemy  in  great  force ; 
large  bodies  of  men  crossed  the  river,  and,  fancying  they 
were  to  have  an  easy  conquest,  advanced  up  the  hill  to   the 
French  centre.     Down   came  the  French,  literally  hurling 
them  back  by  the  force  of  their  charge.     Hundreds  of  the 
enemy  were  crushed,  rolled  into  the  water,  and  put  to  flight ; 
and  as  they  rushed  confusedly  back  across  the  river,  the 
Sardinian  batteries  mowed  them  down  like  grass.     In  this 
decisive  battle  the  Russians  left  three  thousand  dead  on  the 
field,  and  four  hundred  were  taken  prisoners. 

XX VII.  On  Wednesday,   September  5,   the  final  bom- 
bardment of  Sebastopol  began.     The  first  day's  work  was 
tremendous,  and  many  fires  were  observed  within  the  walls 
both  on  Thursday  and  Friday.     Towards  the  afternoon  of 
the  latter  a  Russian  powder  magazine  blew  up,  which  must 
have  done  the  besiegers  appalling  service.   Thus  it  went  on,  and 
a  thousand  a  day  were  killed  or   disabled  by  the  balls  and 
shells  of  the  besiegers.    No  garrison  could  long  withstand  so 
deadly  an  attack.     On  Saturday,  the  8th,  the  allied  armies 
combined  in  a  gigantic  assault,  which  at  the  very  commence- 
ment was  signalized  by  the  gallantry  with  which  the  French 
troops  took  the  Malakhoff  bastion,  and  planted  the  tricolor 
in  view  of  Sebastopol.     The  English  now  attacked  the  Re- 
dan, but  were  repulsed  ;  and  the  Little  Redan  withstood  the 
attack  of  the  French.     The  French  likewise  attacked  the  cen- 
tral bastion,  but  were  defeated  and  forced  to  retreat.     General 
Pelissier  was  now  established  in  the  MalakhofF;  and  Prince 
Gortschakoff,  aware  that  this  success  insured  the  capture  of 
the  town,  resolved  to  leave  it.     That  night,  favored  by  the 
darkness,  he  withdrew  his  troops  across  the  river  in  fine  order, 


104  OUTLINES    OF 

by  means  of  a  bridge  of  rafts ;  the  inhabitants  of  the  town 
were  removed  in  boats  and  steamers ;  the  retreat  was  guarded 
by  General  Schepeleff,  who  prevented  the  French  from  advanc- 
ing into  the  town ;  and  then,  as  the  last  of  the  Russians 
withdrew,  the  bridge  was  destroyed  and  the  buildings  of  Sebas- 
topol  set  on  fire,  in  order  that  nothing  might  be  left  to  the 
conquerors  save  such  ruin,  and  flame,  and  desolation  as  met 
Napoleon  and  his  army  in  the  streets  of  Moscow.  One  by 
one,  forts,  batteries,  and  sailing  vessels  in  the  harbor  blew  up 
with  loud  explosions,  or  sent  forth  vivid  flames.  Next  morn- 
ing the  victors  entered  the  town.  Churches  and  palaces,  all 
blackened  and  ruined,  stood  around,  and  were  visited  with 
eager  curiosity.  A  few  days  later,  and  the  allied  armies  oc- 
cupied Sebastopol,  after  a  siege  of  nearly  twelve  months,  after 
four  bombardments  and  three  great  battles,  after  a  loss  of 
nearly  twenty-seven  hundred  in  the  last  attack,  and  a  total 
loss  on  all  sides,  —  English,  French,  and  Russian,  —  both 
within  and  without  the  walls  of  Sebastopol,  of  something 
like  one  hundred  thousand  men. 

Thus  ended  the  greatest  siege  of  modern  history. 

XXVIII.  On  the  10th  of  November,  1855,  General 
Simpson  resigned  the  command  of  the  British  army  in 
the  Crimea,  and  was  succeeded  by  Sir  William  Codrington. 
On  the  17th  of  October,  the  allied  fleet  captured  the 
forts  at  Kiiiburn,  at  the  mouth  of  the  Dnieper,  having  a 
garrison  of  1400  men  under  General  Kokonovitch.  Kars, 
in  Armenia,  an  important  stronghold  defended  by  28,000 
Turkish  soldiers,  having  been  completely  blockaded  from 
the  middle  of  July  by  the  Russian  General  Muravieff 
with  35,000  men,  surrendered  on  the  29th  of  November, 
under  the  pressure  of  famine.  In  the  preceding  Sep- 
tember, a  desperate  attack  on  this  place,  by  the  Russians, 
was  bravely  repulsed,  the  assailants  leaving  5000  dead  on 
the  field.  The  loss  of  the  Turks  was  about  1000  dead 
and  wounded.  In  December,  Austria  sent  proposals  of 
peace,  which  had  been  sanctioned  by  the  allies,  to  St. 
Petersburg.  These  proposals  were  accepted  by  the  Em- 


ENGLISH    HISTORY.  105 

pel  )T  of  Russia  as  a  basis  of  negotiations,  and  on  the 
26th  of  February,  1856,  plenipotentiaries  of  the  Great 
Powers  assembled  at  Paris  in  conference.  A  treaty  of 
peace  was  signed  on  the  30th  of  March,  by  which  the  ter- 
ritorial integrity  of  the  Ottoman  Empire  was  guaranteed, 
the  Black  Sea  opened  to  the  commerce  of  every  nation, 
and  the  freedom  of  the  navigation  of  the  Danube  secured. 
XXIX.  On  the  8th  of  October,  1856,  the  Chinese  au- 
thorities at  Canton  seized  the  crew  of  a  small  trading 
vessel,  owned  and  manned  by  Chinese,  but  under  the  pro- 
tection of  the  British  flag,  which  seizure  led  to  hostil- 
ities. France  immediately  took  sides  with  Great  Britain, 
and  on  the  29th  of  December,  1857,  the  city  of  Canton 
was  captured  by  the  French  and  English  forces.  The 
allied  squadron  then  advanced  up  the  Pei-ho  River  to  the 
city  of  Tien-tsin,  at  which  place  a  treaty  of  peace  was 
signed  on  the  26th  of  June,  1858.  A  new  treaty  was 
also  obtained  this  year  from  the  Tycoon  (Emperor)  of 
Japan,  by  which  several  of  its  jealously-closed  ports  were 
thrown  open  to  English  commerce.  In  June,  1859,  the 
French  and  English  forces  accompanying  the  French  and 
English  ambassadors  who  had  been  appointed  to  obtain 
the  ratification  of  the  treaty  with  China,  were  obstructed  in 
their  passage  up  the  Pei-ho,  on  their  way  to  Pekin,  and  on 
attempting  to  proceed  by  force,  they  were  repulsed  with 
the  loss  of  several  hundred  men.  An  expedition  was  im- 
mediately fitted  out  by  France  and  England  to  avenge 
this  insult.  The  first  engagement  of  importance  was  the 
capture  of  the  Taku  forts,  containing  about  four  hundred 
guns,  at  the  mouth  of  the  Pei-ho,  on  the  21st  of  August, 
1860,  after  a  determined  resistance  by  the  Chinese.  The 
allied  forces  then  occupied  Tien-tsin,  and  advanced  upon 
Pekin,  which  was  surrendered  on  the  12th  of  October, 
under  the  fear  of  bombardment.  The  summer  palace  of 
the  emperor,  which  contained  all  the  luxuries  that  Chinese 
art  and  wealth  could  furnish,  was  plundered  and  totally 
9* 


106  OUTLINES    OF 

destroyed.  On  the  24th  of  October,  1860,  peace  was  con- 
cluded, and  the  Chinese  were  compelled  to  pay  a  large 
indemnity  to  France  and  England,  to  tolerate  Christianity 
in  the  empire,  and  to  concede  important  commercial  priv- 
ileges. A  war  with  Persia  also  began  in  1856,  by  a  quar- 
rel with  the  English  minister  at  Teheran,  and  terminated 
March  4,  1857,  after  repeated  victories  of  the  English 
troops  in  the  south  of  Persia,  under  the  command  of 
Generals  Outram  and  Havelock. 

XXX.  The  year  1857  was  sadly  distinguished  by  the 
mutiny  of  the  native  army  of  Bengal.  At  this  time,  the 
Bengal  army  consisted  of  nearly  120,000  native  or  Sepoy 
troops,  and  about  22,000  European  troops.  A  new  kind 
of  rifle,  called  the  Enfield  rifle,  was  introduced,  at  the 
beginning  of  the  year,  for  the  use  of  the  army,  and  the 
cartridges  to  be  used  with  the  rifles  were  made  up  with 
greased  paper.  A  report  spread  among  the  Sepoys  that 
the  paper  was  greased  with  a  mixture  of  cow  and  pork 
fat,  a  composition  which  would,  as  the  cartridges  in 
loading  had  to  be  torn  with  the  teeth,  cause  them  to  lose 
caste ;  for  the  Hindoo  regards  the  cow  with  religious  ven- 
eration, and  the  Mohammedan  looks  upon  the  hog  with 
abhorrence.  Other  causes  undoubtedly  aided  to  bring 
about  this  revolt.  During  the  first  four  months  of  the 
year,  ill-feeling  and  insubordination  were  manifested  by 
single  regiments  at  different  stations,  and  on  the  10th  of 
May  a  formidable  rising  took  place  at  Meerut,  thirty-eight 
miles  north-east  of  Delhi.  The  mutineers,  after  murdering 
many  European  officers,  together  with  women  and  chil- 
dren, marched  to  Delhi,  where  they  were  joined  by  the 
native  regiments  there,  and  the  massacre  of  the  European 
residents  began.  Men,  women,  and  children  were  bru- 
tally cut  to  pieces.  Similar  shocking  massacres  were 
committed  at  Cawnpore  and  at  other  places.  Soon  a 
great  army  of  rebels  flocked  from  all  quarters  to  Delhi, 
the  ancient  capital  of  the  Mogul  emperors.  Immediately 


ENGLISH    HISTORY.  107 

the  flames  of  insurrection  leaped  from  post  to  post 
throughout  the  length  and  breadth  of  Bengal,  and  by  the 
end  of  December  seventy-six  regiments  of  Sepoys  had 
mutinied,  and  twenty-seven  had  been  disarmed  or  dis- 
banded. The  first  movements  of  the  English  were  against 
Delhi,  the  focus  of  insurrection,  which  was  stormed  on 
the  14th  of  September,  1857,  after  a  siege  of  three 
months,  conducted  successively  by  Generals  Barnard, 
Reed,  and  Wilson.  The  heroic  defence  of  the  Res- 
idency at  Lucknow  is  known  wherever  the  English  lan- 
guage is  read.  In  this  stronghold  a  small  garrison, 
encumbered  with  helpless  women  and  children,  kept  at 
bay,  for  nearly  three  months,  the  swarming  thousands 
of  ferocious  rebels  who  thirsted  for  their  blood.  A 
small  relieving  force,  under  the  gallant  Generals  Havelock 
and  Outram,  forced  its  way  into  the  Residency  on  the 
25th  of  September,  1857,  and  on  the  17th  of  November, 
Sir  Colin  Campbell,  the  commander-in-chief,  after  heroic 
fighting,  reached  the  garrison  with  sufficient  force  to  ena- 
ble it  to  remove  i"  safety.  Meanwhile  reinforcements 
were  pouring  into  Calcutta.  From  the  1st  of  July  to  the 
end  of  September,  more  than  30,000  troops  had  left  Eng- 
land for  the  East.  On  December  6,  Sir  Colin  Campbell 
defeated  the  Nena  Sahib  with  25,000  rebels  at  Cawnpore, 
and  after  severe  fighting  he  gradually  conquered  Lucknow 
in  March,  1858.  The  last  desperate  stand  of  the  mutiny 
was  made  at  Gwalior,  which  was  taken  by  Sir  Hugh  Rose, 
June  20,  and  in  the  course  of  the  spring  and  summer  of 
1859,  the  whole  population  was  disarmed.  One  important 
result  of  this  mutiny  has  been  the  transfer  of  the  govern- 
ment of  India  from  the  East  India  Company  to  the  crown. 
XXXI.  In  1857-8  a  submarine  cable  was  laid  between 
Ireland  and  Newfoundland,  by  means  of  which  telegraphic 
communication  was  established  between  Europe  and  Amer- 
ica. The  electric  communication  was,  however  inter- 
rupted after  a  short  time,  the  most  powerful  batteries 
failing  to  produce  intelligible  signals. 


108  OUTLINES    OF 

XXXII.  In  1858  Jews  were  admitted  to  Parliament 
On  the  28th  December,  1859,  died  Baron  Thomas  Babing- 
ton  Macaulay,  the  brilliant  historian  and  essayist.  On  the 
9th  of  July,  1860,  the  Prince  of  Wales  left  England  on  a 
visit  to  the  British  North  American  Provinces  and  the 
United  States.  He  was  received  with  great  enthusiasm  in 
the  various  large  cities  which  he  visited.  He  returned  to 
England  in  November  of  the  same  year.  On  the  14th  De- 
cember, 1861,  Prince  Albert,  consort  of  Queen  Victoria, 
died  at  London,  universally  regretted.  He  was  a  man  of 
liberal  culture  and  refined  taste,  interested  in  the  progress 
of  the  arts  and  sciences  and  in  general  philanthropic  sub- 
jects. In  1861,  the  population  of  the  United  Kingdom 
was  more  than  twenty-nine  million  persons.  On  the  1st 
of  May,  1862,  another  great  and  successful  international 
exhibition  was  opened  at  London.  The  building  erected 
for  this  purpose  is  composed  of  brick,  glass,  and  iron,  and 
is  of  a  more  permanent  character  and  considerably  larger 
than  the  famous  Crystal  Palace  of  1851. 

QUESTIONS  TO   CHAPTER  X. 

I.  For  how  long  had  George  IV.  At  what    determination 
IV.    held  the    reins  of    power  did  the  European  powers  arrive, 
before  he  ascended  the  throne  ?  and  who  were  the  allies  ?  When 
What   was  the  first  act  of  his  was     the    battle    of    Navarino 
reign  ?     By     whom    was     the  fought,  and  with  what  result  ? 
queen's     cause     favored?      On  V.   What  were  the  penalties 
what    occasion    did    she   go  to  to  which  Roman  Catholics  were 
Westminster  Abbey,  and  what  subject    at   this    time  ?    When 
followed  ?  was  the  Roman  Catholic  eman- 

II.  What  disaster   happened      cipation  act  passed  ? 

in    Ireland    in     1822?      What  VI.    When  did  George  IV. 

well-known      character      made  die  ?     Who  succeeded  him  ? 

himself     conspicuous  ?      What  VII.   For  what  great  meas- 

sum  was  granted   for  the  relief  ure  is   the   year  1832  famous  ? 

of  the  Irish  ?  What  was  the  nature  of  the  re- 

III.  In  what  year  did  Greece  form  ? 

endeavor  to  throw  off  the  Turk-  VIII.    In  what  year  was  sla- 

ish    yoke  ?     What    great    poet  very    abolished  ?      What    sum 

went  to    their    assistance,   and  was  paid  to   the   slave  owners, 

what  was  his  fate  ?    What  panic  and  how   many   men   were   set 

took  place  in  the  following  year  ?  free  ? 


ENGLISH    HISTORY. 


109 


IX.  When  did  William  IV. 
die  ? 

II.  What  was  the  age  of 
Queen  Victoria  when  she  suc- 
ceeded to  the  throne,  and  in 
wnat  condition  was  the  British 
empire  ?  Why  did  the  Duke 
of  Cumberland  become  King  of 
Hanover  ?  What  was  the  state 
of  Canada,  and  what  measures 
were  taken  by  Parliament  to 
tranquillize  that  colony  ?  What 
ceremony  took  place  in  the  year 
1838,  and  what  great  wars  were 
entered  upon  ? 

XI.  What  was  Chartism,  and 
what  excesses  did  the  Chartists 
commit  ?     In  what  year  did  the 
queen  marry  ?     What  was  the 
result  of  the  war  in  China  ? 

XII.  How   did    the    Indian 
war  progress  in  the  mean  time  ? 
How    did    Lord    Ellenborough 
retrieve    the    national    honor? 
Relate  the  events  in  China. 

XIII.  In  what  year   did  the 
Sikh   war  begin  ?     How  many 
battles  were  fought   with  these 
tribes,  and  with   what  success  ? 
When   was  peace     concluded  ? 
When  were  the   corn  laws   re- 
pealed ? 

XIV.  For  what  event  is  1851 
celebrated  ?     Repeat  the  statis- 
tics of  the  Crystal  Palace.  What 
became  of  the  materials  ?  What 
great  vehicle  of  communication 
was  this  year  established  between 
England  and  France  ? 

XV.  When  did  the  Duke  of 
Wellington  die  ?      When    and 
where  was  he  buried  ? 

XVI.  For  how  long  had  Eng- 
land now  been  at  peace  with  Eu- 
rope ?  What  claims  of  the  Empe- 
ror Nicholas  provoked  the  late 
war?     What  provinces   did  he 
seize  ?  What  was  the  conduct  of 
the  sultan  ?    By  what  massacre 
were     England      and     France 
roused  to  indignation  ?     When 
was  war  declared,  and  what  fol- 
lowed ? 


XVII.  When  was  the  first 
blow  struck?    Describe  the  af- 
fair of  Odessa. 

XVIII.  Where   did  the  ar- 
mies encamp  ?     How  many  died 
of  cholera  in  the  English  army  ? 
Where  is  Silistria  ?     How  long 
did  the    Russians    besiege    it  ? 
How   did  the   siege   terminate, 
and  what  were  the  numbers  on 
each  side  ? 

XIX.  What  place    did    the 
allies  invade,  and  when  did  they 
arrive  there  ?     When   did    the 
battle  of  the  Alma  take  place  ? 
What  were  the  numbers  on  each 
side  ?     Relate  the  order  of  the 
battle.     What  were  the   losses 
of  the  allies  and  Russians  ?    To 
what  place  did  the  army  next 
proceed  ? 

XX.  What  preparations  were 
now  made    before  Sebastopol? 
When  did  the  siege  begin  ? 

XXI.  When  was  the  battle 
of    Balaklava    fought  t     What 
was    the  result?      What   were 
the  English  losses  ? 

XXII.  What  noble  lady  now 
left  England,  and  by  whom  was 
she  accompanied  ?      What    as- 
sistance  was   sent  out  through 
the  Times'  subscription  ? 

XXIII.  On  what    day  was 
the  battle  of  Inkermann  fought  ? 
How  did  the  Russians  advance  ? 
What  was  the   appearance  of 
the    battle  ?      How    were     the 
English  relieved  ?  What  was  the 
end  of  the  contest  ?     How  long 
had  it  lasted,  and  what  were  the 
numbers  on  each  side  ? 

XXIV.  When  did  the  Empe- 
ror Nicholas  die  ?    What  effect 
had  his   death  upon  the  war  ? 
What  useful  works  were  estab- 
lished  at  the   Crimea  ?    What 
was  the  strength  and  state  of 
the  armies  at  this  time  ? 

XXV.  Relate  the  events  of 
the   18th  of  June.     When  did 
Lord  Raglan  die  ?    Who  suc- 
ceeded him  in  the  command  ? 


110 


OUTLINES    OF    ENGLISH   HISTORY. 


XXVI.  How     many     men 
were     sent      from    Sardinia  ? 
When   did   the   battle   of   the 
Tchernaya   take   place  ?     How 
did  it  end  ?     How  many  Rus- 
sians were  killed  and  taken  ? 

XXVII.  When  did  the  final 
bombardment    begin  ?       How 
many  were  killed  daily  by  the 
missiles  of  the  allies  in  Sebas- 
topol  ?     When  was  this  great 
attack    made  ?      What    army 
took    the    Malakhoff?     What 
success     had     the     English  ? 
What  French  general  was  es- 
tablished   in    the    Malakhoff? 
What  was  the  course  pursued 
by  the  Russian   commander  ? 
By    whom    was    the     retreat 
guarded,  and  in  what  state  did 
the  Russians  leave  Sebastopol  ? 
How  long  had  the  siege  occu- 
pied ?      How  many    bombard- 
ments  and  battles   had   there 
been  ?     How  many   were  lost 
in  the  last  attack  ?     How  many 
had     fallen     altogether,     both 
>>vithin  and  without  the  walls, 
during  this  siege  ? 

XXVIII.  Who      succeeded 
General  Simpson  in  command 
of  the  British  army  in  the  Cri- 
mea?    What  forts   were   cap- 
tured   by    the      allied    fleet? 
Where    is    Kinburn  ?      What 
stronghold  was   conquered   by 
the  Russians  ?     What  country 
acted    as    mediator  ?      Where 
and  when  was  the  peace  con- 
ference held  ?    When  was  the 
treaty  signed  ?    What  were  the 
principal  terms  of  the  treaty  ? 

XXIX.  What  was  the  cause 
of  the  war  with  China  ?     Who 
aided  the  English  ?    What  city 
was   first    captured    from    the 
Chinese  ?     When  and  at  what 
city    was    a    treaty    of    peace 
signed  ?     Where  is  Tien-tsin  ? 
What   other  treaty  was   made 
the  same   year  ?    What  occa- 


sioned a  continuation  of  hostil- 
ities ?  What  did  the  French 
and  English  then  do  ?  Where 
was  the  first  important  en- 
gagement ?  What  was  the 
result  ?  When  did  Pekin  sur- 
render ?  What  about  the  em- 
peror's summer  palace  ?  When 
was  peace  concluded,  and  on 
what  terms  ?  What  is  said 
concerning  the  war  with 
Persia  ? 

XXX.  For    what    was    the 
year       1857        distinguished  ? 
What  was  the  number  of  the 
Sepoy  and    of  the    European 
troops    at  this  time  ?      What 
was  the  cause  of  the  mutiny  ? 
Where  did  the  first  formidable 
rising  take  place  ?    What  then 
happened  ?    What  was  the  ex- 
tent   of   the   mutiny  ?      What 
were    the  first   movements   of 
the  English  ?    When   and  by 
whom  was  Delhi  taken  ?  What 
is   said   about  the   defence   of 
the    Residency   at    Lucknow? 
Who  was   the   commander-in- 
chief  at  this  time  ?     How  many 
troops  were  sent  from  England 
between   the   1st  of  July  and 
the  end  of  September  ?     Who 
was    defeated    at    Cawnpore  ? 
Where    was    the    last    stand 
made  ?    What    result   of   this 
mutiny  is  mentioned  ? 

XXXI.  What  is  said  about 
the  submarine  cable  ? 

XXXII.  When  were    Jews 
admitted       to       Parliament  ? 
When      did     Macaulay     die? 
When  did  the  Prince  of  Wales 
visit  the  British  North  Amer- 
ican Provinces  and  the  United 
States  ?      When    did    Prince 
Albert    die  ?      What    is    said 
about    him  ?      What  was    the 
population      of     the      United 
Kingdom   in    1861  ?    What  is 
said    about    the    international 
exhibition  ? 


YA  04012 


'      ."    ' 

HILLARD'S    READERS. 


THE  PRIMER  OR  FIRST  READER,  ILLUSTRATED. 

SECOND  READER,  " 

THIRD  READER,  " 

FOURTH  READER,  " 

INTERMEDIATE  READER,  " 
FIFTH  READER. 
SIXTH  READER. 

Mr.  Hillard »s  New  Series  of  Readers  have  been  introduced  wholly 
or  in  part  into  |he  Public  Schools  of  BOSTON,  NEW  YORK,  PHILA- 
DELPHIA, WASHINGTON,  OnickGo,  PROVIDENCE,  HARTFORD,  t 

LAND,  ClIARLEfefrOWN,  NORWfCH,   AUGUSTA,  Me.,  BlDDEFORJ 

uid  many  other  'important  places. 


From  JOHN  G.    WIUTTIER. 

I  have  no  hesitation  in  commending-  the  scries  to  public  patronage. 

if'rom  JOHN  D.  PHILBRICK,  Sup't  Public  Schools  of  Boston. 

From  present  indications  I  feel  warranted  in  saying  that  reading  in 
our  grammar  schools  will  be  advairad  during  the  year  twenty-live 
per  cent,  in  consequence  of  the  introduction  ol  this  series. 

From  Prof.  GEO.   HOWLAND,  Principal  of  Public  High  School, 
Chicago,  III. 


Hillard's  Sixth  Reader,  now  in  use  In  my  school,  by  far 
the  best  Reader  that  has  been  presented  to  the  educational  public. 
We  fully  indorse  Mr.  Rowland's  opinion  concerning  Hillard's  Read- 
ers. E.  C.  DELANO,  Principal  Chicago  formal  School. 

f.  S.  HEY  WOOD,  Principal  Off  den  School,  Chicago. 

From  Rev.  A.  L.  STONE,  D.  D.,  Pastor  of  Park  St.  Church,  Boston. 

The  volumes  are  aglow  with  wit,  humor,  el<>  ihos,  .-md  the 

purest  and  loftiest  sentiments  of  patriotism,  humanity,  and  religion. 

The  habitual  use  of  this  series  of  reading-books  would  be  almost  an 
education,  in  itself.  New  York 

We  believe  this  [the  selection  of  pieces]  is  what  Mr.  Hillard  has  done 
better  than  has  ever  been  done  before.  New  York  7 

These  books  are  among  the  best  educational  works  ever  published  — 
or'  their  kind  they  are  the  very  best.  Their  rvimpil'T,  the  lion.  G.  S. 
Hillard,  of  Boston,  is  an  accomplished  scholar  and  an  orator. 

York  World. 

*»*  Teachers  and  School  Committees  are  hivited  to  address  the  pub- 
lishers,   Favorable  terms  will  be  given  for  introduction. 

U  JB  K  W  E  R,     .A.  Isr  I  )      J    I  J  ,  E  S  T  O  3S", 
,    .  47  FRANKLIN 


